Revelations
by RKF55
Summary: A heat-wave, an outrageous dinner guest, and a revealing dream bring Georg and Maria closer together. Set just before the ball.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own the Sound of Music or any of its characters.

Author's Notes: This story is set just before the ball. Originally I wrote the prologue as a stand-alone piece, but decided that it was probably too short to publish on its own! Any reviews/constructive criticism are very welcome and are very much appreciated!

_PROLOGUE_

The abbey gate slammed closed with the same decisive finality as it had the last time Maria had left – now nearly a month ago. In many ways her time at the Von Trapp villa seemed to have flown by, though when she considered all that had happened that summer, it felt rather like a lifetime had passed since she had last stood outside those walls.

It had been the Captain who had suggested that perhaps she might like to go into town during her day off, and with the children in the capable care of their Uncle Max, the idea of visiting the abbey had suddenly become a very appealing one.

It had been a most enjoyable day in the end - she had taken morning mass with the sisters, been granted a short council with the Reverend Mother herself, and had delighted in catching up with friends who she had left behind earlier that summer.

One of those friends was still with her now - Josephine, the scullery maid. About Maria's age, and having come to Nonnberg Abbey at around the same time, the two women got along famously, despite being quite different. Josephine did not have any desire to become a postulant, and in fact found the very idea most repugnant. She wanted to see the world, she had decided, as soon as she could get away from Salzburg that was. Such an attitude had created some bad-feeling between the young scullery maid and many of the more traditionally-minded sisters, but Josephine did not seem to mind in the slightest. On the contrary, she often found great amusement in their disapproval, and had decided that Maria, with her rather wayward and sometimes lax attitude towards some of the abbey's rules, was a willing ally.

Maria, for her part, found the scullery maid rather brash at times, but she was refreshing company and provided an interesting outlook on life.

It seemed that Josephine was eager to share some of her outlook that evening as she accompanied Maria to the bus stop.

"There are really only two choices I think..." she said when they had walked far enough away from the abbey to be out of earshot of even the most determined sisters, "Either I stay here and work until I am fifty - and then only have enough money to get as far as Vienna - or I must marry a Count!"

"A Count?" Maria laughed, knowing that her friend was not entirely serious.

"Mm-hmm... a Count with enough money for me to travel the world!"

Maria shook her head.

"Or a normal man," she suggested, "Who you would be much happier with..."

Josephine sighed theatrically before shaking her head, "No..." she concluded, "That just won't do... he must be rich... and fine-looking and-"

"Don't let the sisters hear you saying that!"

They were still laughing about the idea when they reached St Peter's church. A jazz band had set up in the middle of the square outside - a saxophonist, trumpet-player, and a violinist. A crowd had gathered and the two women practically had to force their way through before they reached the bus stop.

Maria sighed, wiping her brow as they finally reached the place.

"They're very good-" she started, looking back towards the musicians who she could now appreciate better.

"Maria, who is _that_?"

Josephine, not the slightest bit interested in music, was staring the other way. Maria followed her gaze to see a man leaning casually against a black automobile parked at the side of the square, watching them with a rather amused smirk on his face.

"Oh!" she exclaimed in recognition, "Well that's... the Captain..."

She frowned in confusion - what on earth was he doing there?

"_That's_ Captain Von Trapp?" Josephine echoed, "You didn't tell me he was so... _handsome_!"

Maria considered him. Leaning against the body of the car, wearing a bottle-green jacket and dark trousers, his legs stretched out in front of him and his hands in his pockets, he looked as though he did not have a care in the world. _Effortlessly_ handsome, she thought before quickly chastising herself.

He saw them looking and raised his hand in a wave before beginning to walk towards them.

"May I suggest an alternative form of transportation, Fraulein?" he greeted her with a smile, gesturing his hand towards the car.

Josephine's eyes widened notably.

"I... well I..." she did not know quite what to say - his arrival was completely unexpected. He smirked at her again before flicking his eyes towards Josephine.

"Oh, this is my friend Josephine, Captain..." she introduced them hurriedly.

"The scullery maid..." Josephine supplied quickly. No chance of him believing _her_ to be a postulant then.

"Pleased to meet you," he nodded politely and Maria rolled her eyes as her friend practically swooned under his gaze.

"You work at the abbey?" he asked her.

She nodded and he smiled fractionally.

"Now then, Fraulein..." his attention was back to her a second later.

"Yes, of course, Captain!" she collected herself, "That's very kind of you..."

He motioned her towards the car and she turned to say her goodbyes to Josephine.

"Um... if you're heading back that way now..." the Captain interrupted, "I can easily drive you..."

He pulled open both the front passenger and one of the rear passenger doors.

Josephine made a quiet noise of agreement before fastening Maria with a very significant look.

"Just a second..." the Captain nodded to them as they climbed into the car, before turning to walk back towards the musicians, his wallet in hand.

Josephine giggled the moment his back was turned.

"'_May I suggest an alternative form of transportation, Fraulein?'" _she mimicked his deep baritone, "Good heavens, Maria, does he _always_ talk like that?"

Maria stifled her laugh as the Captain swung himself back into the car.

"Nonnberg abbey then... uh, Fraulein Josephine?"

"That's very kind of you sir."

She exchanged another glance with Maria which Maria was positive the Captain had seen too. A shadow of a smile was playing on his face all the way up the hill to the abbey.

Both women stepped out when the car reached the gates. They embraced quickly.

"Write to me!" Josephine made it a command rather than a request, her eyes flicking once again in the direction of the Captain as he turned the car around.

"I will..." Maria replied before a shout from Sister Berthe startled both of them.

"Josephine Fischer!" the exclamation was enough to startle several birds from their roost on the abbey roof, "Just _what_ are you doing out there?"

"I think she will still talk to me like that when I'm her age," Josephine replied rolling her eyes. She nevertheless hastened her way across the road as Maria climbed into the car once more.

As Sister Berthe flung open the gate to admit the scullery maid her eyes inevitably fell on the Captain's car. Maria took great delight in the expression of utter horror which crossed the Mistress of Novices' face as he sent them speeding away.

She laughed as she watched the sister's face receding in the rear-view mirror.

"Something amusing, Fraulein?"

"Oh I would imagine that will generate quite a scene in the abbey, Captain..." she smiled.

He frowned.

"It's not every day that Captains in expensive cars come to visit Nonnberg..." she half-explained.

He made a vague noise of agreement.

"It's very kind of you to...um... pick me up Captain..." she began questioningly a minute later.

"Oh it's no trouble, Fraulein," he reassured her, "I was in town anyway and I suspected that you would probably be catching the last bus back."

He shrugged.

"Thank you."

She was incredibly touched that he had waited for her.

He shrugged again, and then, seeming a little embarrassed by her sincerity, changed the subject once more.

"So, what news from the abbey, then?"

Maria laughed.

"Well, not much that would interest you, I don't think, Captain."

"Try me."

"Well, the Reverend Mother and the Mistress of Novices were..."

She started her story and he smiled to himself. Almost subconsciously he found himself turning the car onto the longer route back home.


	2. Chapter 2

_ONE_

It was another sticky, hot day. The Salzburg-Aigen region had not known such a summer heat wave for many years – days and days of oppressive heat and humidity rolled by without a spot of rain, and barely a hint of wind had been felt since the beginning of August. At first, such weather had been celebrated – marquees had been routed out from their winter hiding places, invitations to garden parties were sent streaming around the countryside in their hundreds, and the ladies of high society had taken to the streets of town in abundance, parasols at the ready, ruthlessly competing for the first of the new summer fashions.

As the days meandered into weeks however, enthusiasm significantly lessoned. The heat began to take its toll on even the most resilient of characters - lamentations were soon flying around the salons and drawing rooms of Salzburg and dark portents of drought and heat-sickness began to whirl about in abundance. Even those who purported to adore summer soon became less vocal in their excitement, and for those who disliked hot weather… well, the summer months were becoming torturous.

Captain Georg Von Trapp most definitely fell into the latter category, and that particular afternoon found himself returning to the villa after a very uncomfortable trip to town. The white-paved squares of Salzburg had transformed the city into a hothouse, leaving the streets deserted and the open air cafes empty. And he would most _definitely_ have been indoors himself, Georg had considered dryly, were it for not for the sense of duty - perhaps mixed with a dash of guilt - which had sent him out in the first place.

The dress-maker had been surprised to see him come in, not least at midday when the sun was at its peak. But yes, Baroness Schrader's ball gown _was_ ready for collection, he had assured Georg, and a delightful specimen it was too, he had gushed. Delightful or not though, Georg had cursed the large packaged dress many times during his struggle back to the car, wishing that he had never ventured out to collect it at all.

He had also intended to purchase an engagement ring since - according to Max Dettwelier at least - society had been alight with speculation ever since the invitations to the party had been received. That the great Georg Von Trapp, permanent recluse since his wife's death, would be hosting a party in honour of one of Vienna's most well-known socialites... well there just had to be a wedding in the offing didn't there?

"I remember the days when a man had to get down on one knee to propose to a woman," he had commented ironically to Max, "Now it seems that we needn't even bother asking! Fait accompli!"

And indeed it did seem that the engagement was exactly that. Accomplished. Decided. Somehow the once newly-confirmed bachelor Captain Georg Von Trapp was an engaged man for the second time in his life… at least to everyone _outside_ the villa. And inside - well, as Max had put it - Baroness Elsa Schräder did not like to be kept waiting.

With such a warning ringing in his ears, Georg had decided to purchase an engagement ring that very afternoon. Not because he had to give it to her right away, he had rationalised to himself, but just because it would be a sensible thing to have ready. After all, had he not been planning to propose to Elsa since the beginning of the summer?

He could not deny however that the whole situation made him feel rather uncomfortable and more than a little claustrophobic, no matter how many times he re-iterated to himself that everything was going as planned. And as far as purchasing the engagement ring… well, it had been an unmitigated disaster. He had found himself wandering in and out of many different jewellery shops, his mood souring with every cabinet of rings he inspected. Certainly it had been far from the quick and easy process he had enjoyed the first time around.

He had no idea what he was really looking for, he had rapidly concluded, and not one of the rings he saw seemed right for Elsa Schräder's hand.

The final straw had come when he had finally found a ring that he liked. With a single diamond set between two midnight blue sapphires, it was far from the most ostentatious or expensive. Something about that particular one appealed to him though, and he had found himself imagining how he would place it on the ring finger of his fiancé… only to realise that the woman he was thinking of was most definitely _not_ Elsa Schräder.

And it was not dear Agathe either, he had fumed, thoroughly enraged as he had stormed away from the jewellery shop and straight back to his car.

Such thoughts occupied his mind exclusively on the drive home, and he arrived back at the villa in a distinctly unpleasant mood, foisting the dress into Franz's arms with a barked order to take it up to Elsa's room.

The stillness of the air inside was rather oppressive, and the terrace was sure to be blisteringly hot, Georg decided grimly as he loosened his tie and looked around. The villa seemed to be deserted and he strode quickly towards the ballroom doors, keen to take refuge in shady courtyard outside – his latest and most favoured haunt in the hot weather.

"Georg, darling!"

The call came the second he had set foot in the ballroom, issuing through the doors at the back of the room – propped open to 'get some air in' as Frau Schmidt had informed him cheerily the day before.

Georg grimaced, forcing a smile as he strode outside.

A small table and three chairs had been set up in the shadiest part of the courtyard, two of them already occupied by the impresario and the Baroness, and the third no doubt waiting for him.

"Good afternoon, my dear," he stooped to kiss her cheek.

Wearing a sienna coloured dress with a dark brown belt, the only sign that Elsa had noticed the heat at all was the fan held loosely in her right hand. She looked as composed as if she were in one of her Viennese salons - sophisticated, unruffled, and as beautiful as ever – for some reason the sight only annoyed Georg further.

"Iced tea?" Max asked, setting out a glass, "Wickedly hot isn't it?"

The impresario had been acquainted with Georg long enough to know how much he despised such hot weather, and had already found a good amount of amusement that morning in learning of the Captain's planned trip to Salzburg.

"How was town, darling?" Elsa asked, before Georg could reply with more than a frown.

"Sweltering, my dear," he replied dryly. Max chuckled slightly, "I haven't known it to be this hot since... well since some of our far-flung excursions in the Navy!"

"And at least then we had cotton uniforms!" Max replied irritably, pulling at his tie, "Though my career with the Navy was uh, _mercifully_ short-lived-"

This time it was Georg's turn to laugh.

"- I did appreciate not having to wear this _ridiculous_ formal attire in the summer," he took another sip of his drink, "And at least we had the ocean…. I think your children have the right idea, Georg," he continued, "I believe they are spending the afternoon swimming-"

"Swimming?" Georg interrupted; "Where? In the lake?" he was sure that he knew whose idea _that_ would have been.

"Yes, the poor dears seemed to be simply expiring in the heat," Elsa answered.

"Oh don't worry, Georg," Max said, sounding amused again, "They are in the capable hands of our dear Fraulein Maria, and they _are_ the sons and daughters of one of Austria's great naval heroes after all...!"

"Yes, and that would spread through society with a vengeance," Georg replied, exasperated, "The news that the children of Captain Von Trapp had drowned in the lake on their own estate!"

He was joking, more to keep his mind away from the sudden question of whether or not Fraulein Maria had joined the children in their swimming… not to mention the disturbingly enticing memory of the governess, drenched to the skin after her first 'dip' in the lake….

"Oh, that would be awfully tragic!" Elsa thankfully interrupted his musings, "But don't worry, Georg, I'm sure they will be perfectly fine..."

"Yes, yes, of course," he replied quickly, cursing his runaway imagination, "I have every faith in Maria - _Fraulein_ Maria's judgement," he corrected himself as Elsa raised an eyebrow.

The admission surprised him slightly, more so when he realised that it was in fact largely true.

Max disguised a rather knowing chuckle as Georg guided the conversation back to safer territory.

"I had Franz take your dress up to your room for you."

"Oh, thank you, darling!" Elsa exclaimed, leaning over to kiss him on the cheek, "I hope you did not spoil the surprise by taking a peek?"

"Of course not," Georg replied, "I gave you my word that I would not see the dress until the night of the party."

Elsa laughed softly, "It is worth waiting for, darling - I'm sure Max would tell you that it is simply the most divine dress you will ever lay eyes on..."

"Then I am sure you will do it justice, my dear," Georg replied smoothly, "After all, what is a divine dress without an equally radiant woman to wear it?"

Elsa glowed at his compliment.

"I just hope that I will be acceptable to all of your guests, Georg," she replied, meaning of course that she hoped she would be acceptable for _him_, "After all, I could not possibly take your arm for such an _occasion_ without wearing something extra special…."

Georg smiled but shifted slightly in his seat, knowing that she was hinting at the formal announcement of their engagement. Perhaps seeing this, Max chose that moment to ask:

"I take it your shopping trip was successful then, Georg?"

"More or less," he replied, feeling suddenly guilty.

The conversation suddenly felt rather uncomfortable again.

"You will look more than acceptable to all of my guests, darling," he went on a second later, though that wasn't what she had really been asking and they both knew it - after all, as reputedly Vienna's greatest socialite, Elsa Schräder certainly knew how to dress herself to impress at a party.

"Now, if you will excuse me," Georg continued a second later, suddenly wanting to get as far away from the conversation as possible, "I have a couple of things to attend to in my study - before Lieutenant Steiner and the Ebners arrive for dinner of course."

"Ah, of course," Max replied with a smile, "That will be _most_ interesting - I wonder what tales Christoph will have to regale us with this evening?"

Georg grimaced slightly but did not reply. Nodding his head to both Max and Elsa, he replaced his empty glass onto the table, and began to walk back indoors.

He was already regretting inviting his dinner guests to the villa - Christoph Steiner and Andreas Ebner were old friends of his and Max from their days in the Navy, though the two men could not have been more different. Herr Ebner had a reputation for being one of the most boring men ever to serve in the forces of the Austro-Hungarian empire, and despite having never met her, Georg was sure that his wife could be no better - after all, Georg considered himself to be a moderately interesting man, but in the sole company of Andreas Ebner he would suddenly find himself losing the will to try and be interesting at all. Christoph Steiner on the other hand had been one of the most notorious gossipers and womanisers in the entire Navy. Even now, with the Navy just a memory, he was proud to still use his rank and title as a key to a woman's heart - or, if not her heart, just her boudoir - and to vociferously encourage others to do the same. For all his faults however, Lieutenant Steiner did make for very lively company, and Georg could not remember a single evening in which the Lieutenant had been present that had not been memorable in some way.

It had been several years now since Georg had seen either of the gentlemen and he had suspected that he would never do so again - he had never been one for attending officers' reunions, finding the occasions overly nostalgic at best and downright depressing at worst. On Max's last trip to town however, the impresario had encountered both Ebner and Steiner in a chance meeting and learnt that the two men happened to be travelling to Salzburg together. Georg had privately agreed with Max when he had said that he could not think of any two people less likely to make good travelling companions, but when they had discovered that Max was staying with the 'great Captain Georg Von Trapp', it had of course been only polite to invite them to dinner.

Georg was sure that the evening would be highly interesting, though possibly not in a good way.


	3. Chapter 3

_TWO_

"Yes, I do imagine Christoph Steiner will have _quite_ some tales to tell!" Max continued the conversation to Elsa as the sound of Georg's footsteps disappeared into the villa, "I'm sure he will _delight_ in regaling you with scandalous stories when he finds out who your husband-to-be is: if Georg will let him of course!" he laughed, rubbing his hands together.

His playful tone did not sit well with Elsa Schräder. Georg was not her husband-to-be - not yet - and this worried Elsa more than she was willing to admit.

"Max, you know as well as I do that Georg is not my husband-to-be: not _officially_."

Max noticed with some amusement that her tone was far more caustic and biting towards him than any he had ever heard her use with Georg. He watched as her eyes flicked away from him and back towards the open door to the ballroom.

"And I do not believe that Christoph Steiner would have anything more frightful to tell me than that which Agathe had already confided in me," Elsa continued, "We were the best of friends, you know."

She barely heard Max's amused retort that there were some things that even Agathe Von Trapp had not known about her husband's early life in the Navy - instead her thoughts inevitably returned to her usual source of frustration - Captain Von Trapp.

She had always suspected that he would be reluctant to propose. After all, he had lost his heart so completely to Agathe Whitehead that at first she had wondered whether there was anything left of it for him to offer to her. No, that wasn't exactly what was irritating her.

It was more the fact that every aspect of her relationship with him - all the flirtations, innuendos, and far-too-chaste kisses - rather paled in comparison with the stories Agathe had once told her.

She had never heard anything about the intimate aspects of their marriage of course – Agathe would never have been so indiscreet – but she had heard plenty – in fact far more than she had ever wanted to - about the beginning of their relationship. In fact, Elsa had been present at the very moment the couple had first set eyes upon each other, and had seen for herself that from that evening onwards, Georg Von Trapp was a taken man.

Agathe had confided everything in Elsa during those early days, most particularly her worries about Georg's character. After all, handsome young sea Captains often had notorious reputations, and whilst Georg Von Trapp's was not the very worst, no one could have named him a saint. That had always been part of his appeal though, especially to Elsa who had secretly harboured a fancy of her own towards him.

Thankfully the future Baroness Von Trapp had been worrying in vain - it had soon become clear that Georg Von Trapp had eyes only for his new beloved, and that heartbreak was the very last thing which young Agathe Whitehead needed to worry about.

Elsa could still remember the twang of jealousy it had caused her at the time, especially when Agathe had come to her for advice before her marriage, telling her that the passion that she saw in Georg's eyes and felt in his embraces scared her - not that he would ever compromise her of course, but just that he might not be able to keep his restraint until they were married. She had told Elsa with shining eyes how he made her feel, and how she was not at all sure that she would be able to resist giving into that desire _herself_ if they were not careful.

All of this had mildly annoyed Elsa at the time - after all, Baron Schräder, who she had become engaged to a few months after the announcement of the Von Trapp wedding, had never wanted to marry her for love, and whilst she had never really had any serious complaints about the physical side of their relationship, she had never known anything like what Agathe was describing.

In the end, after her marriage, Agathe never brought up the subject, and until now Elsa had assumed that the matter would not bother her again.

Now however, all was very different, for it was _she_, Elsa, who was supposedly the subject of Georg's desires. From the moment she had arrived at the villa she had expected and hoped that she would begin to see the side of the Captain which Agathe Von Trapp had known so well. After all, she knew that _she_ desired him more than any man she had before - she had desired him from the moment they had met all those years ago, and meeting him again after they had both lost their spouses had revealed to her that she still found him just as irresistible as when she had first lain eyes on him.

"You look terribly thoughtful, my dear," Max's voice cut into her thoughts.

"I was just thinking of our dear Agathe," she replied, half-truthfully, shaking her head slightly, "I wish we had not allowed ourselves to drift apart over the years…." She paused for a second before turning to face Max, "Do you think I ought to be worried?"

"Worried?" he feigned ignorance, "Whatever about?"

"You know perfectly well what about!" Elsa replied, "Georg, our 'engagement'," she lowered her voice to a whisper, "His seeming infatuation with... with that governess!" she could not bring herself to say Maria's name.

Before arriving at the villa, Elsa had just about convinced herself that Georg's lack of romantic fervour was simply because he was older and wiser and not some head-strong young man with a raging libido, but watching him with Maria had planted new and disturbing doubts in her mind.

And _that_, she decided, was the real reason that the summer months were becoming unbearable.

There were times when she saw Georg watching the young woman with something akin to the fire she had seen in his eyes when he had looked at Agathe. _Lustful _- that was the only description that she could find for some of the gazes which Georg fixed on the postulant and never a description that could be honestly applied to any of his appraisals of her.

Max sighed. "I don't know," he replied honestly, "And I don't think that he knows yet either."

"Oh Max!"

Max placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, but removed it a second later with a laugh when he saw her expression change to one of determination.

"I have seen that look before," he teased, putting his arm around her and pulling her towards him, "And usually just before some master scheme of manipulation!"

"You know me too well," Elsa replied sardonically. No, she would not lose Georg to a mere governess, a woman who was as far away from Austrian aristocracy as she herself was from becoming a nun. She just could not bear that.

"Have faith, my dear Max," she continued leaning closer to him and whispering in his ear, "I have a few more tricks at my disposal yet!"

He laughed again, "Just where _do_ you learn these things, my darling?" he asked.

Elsa replied with a coy look and tapped the side of her nose teasingly.

"Well I pray that I am never on the receiving end of one of your schemes!" he joked.

"Oh you would see straight through it Max, you know that perfectly well!"

"And Georg won't?"

"He is an intelligent man..." she mused with a rather wicked gleam in her eyes, "But he lacks that _kind_ of intelligence..."

The impresario laughed and squeezed her shoulder affectionately, "You mean he is not as devious as you...?"

"Or you!"

They shared a laugh and Max was pleased to see a renewed confidence in Elsa's countenance – he only wished that he could share it. As preposterous as it seemed however, Max was becoming increasingly suspicious that Georg's feelings for Maria ran far deeper than a mere infatuation. Whether the Captain would ever choose to act upon them was another matter, but Max had the uneasy premonition that if Georg came to realise that he loved the governess, no amount of backlash from society would prevent him from acting with his heart.

Still, there was no point worrying Elsa with his fears yet, he decided - it was clear that Georg was still in denial of whatever deeper feelings he might have, and perhaps, if he continued to remain so, Maria would leave the villa in September as intended.

"Let's go and check your dress, my dear," he said at last, choosing to change the subject.

"How scandalous, Max!" Elsa teased him, smiling mock-flirtatiously, "I am appalled that you would consider entering my bed chamber, un-chaperoned!"

Max simply laughed, taking Elsa's hand in his own and leading her into the house.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Georg had not been in his study for very long when the temptation to take a walk in the grounds of the villa became too strong to resist. The study was almost unbearably hot with its dark mahogany furniture and thick curtains and carpet - the moment that Georg had walked in he had found himself almost gagging in the heat, and had immediately removed his jacket and tie. He chose not to sit at his desk, as the chair was directly in the path of the sunshine, and instead took a seat on the couch in front of the fireplace with a large stack of bound papers which he intended to examine. After about ten minutes of reading, however, Georg had to conclude that he was taking in nothing.

Letting out a sigh he irritably pushed the papers onto a side table and ran his hands across his face and into his hair. Unsurprisingly perhaps, a discourse on torpedo-manufacturing just could not hold his attention in such heat, and, he was loathe to admit to himself, when his mind seemed completely distracted with the tantalising possibility that just out in the grounds….

Once again he was forced to reign in his thoughts. Whether Maria was swimming with the children or was watching from the safety of dry land was irrelevant and he knew that he most definitely should not be so interested in which it was. Certainly he would not even have given the matter a second thought if it was any of the children's former governesses in the same situation, expect perhaps to raise an eyebrow that they had permitted the children to go swimming in the first place.

It gave him a sudden pang of guilt when he realised that he had now given far more thought to what Maria might, or more particularly might _not _be wearing at that exact moment than he had to what Elsa would look like in the dress that he had spent all morning collecting. No, he would not give the matter a single minute of further thought, he told himself firmly, picking up his papers again... and yet...

A few minutes after that Georg found himself striding across the foyer of the villa and towards the terrace. He was disgusted with himself, even as he attempted to rationalise what he was doing - it was much too hot to stay inside, he would have still been outside anyway if it was not for the fact that his conversation with Max and Elsa seemed to enter dangerous territory every time the subject was changed, it was his duty as their father to ensure that the children were indeed perfectly safe… all rather pathetic reasons, he could not help but think, and none of which made him feel any better about the way he was acting. He was sure that he would regret his deplorable lack of self-control later.

As soon as he stepped out onto the terrace, Georg heard the sounds of the children's laughter coming from towards the lake. He could hear excited squeals and yells, and as he made his way down the steps and towards the water's edge, splashes and more laughter. He felt his own face break out into a smile as he saw his seven children, all wearing the same expression of blissful happiness, and all absolutely soaked to the skin. They were not out far at all; just about up to the older children's waists. He noticed with pride that Liesl and Friedrich had Gretl and Marta on their shoulders, and that Louisa was holding Gretl's hand - his youngest daughter had always been the most nervous around water. Kurt was holding a football, and Georg watched in amusement as he sent it flying towards an unsuspecting Brigitta who only just spun around to catch it in time after a warning shout from one of her sisters. All in all it was the most perfect summer scene that Georg could ever have hoped for - perfect, that was, except for the obvious absence of Fraulein Maria.

He had been sure that she would not actually be swimming with the children. After all, she had arrived with just a single dress, and he had not given her anything at all appropriate to make a swimming costume out of. He suspected too that constructing appropriate swimwear for herself out of a set of drapes was probably beyond even Maria's tailoring skills. Despite this a part of him still felt disappointed, though he instantly denied it. And at least he would have no new visions of Maria plaguing his dreams that night, he thought darkly.

The children were so absorbed in their game that they had not seen him, and Georg turned away from the lake, intending to head back into the house before they began pestering him to join them in water. He was honestly quite tempted though.

Before he could take a single step back towards the house however, his eyes finally fell on the figure of Maria, sitting in the shade beneath one of the trees just a few paces from the gazebo. The sight of her caused him to falter and immediately he felt his heartbeat quicken. She was wearing a beautiful dress that he had never seen before- it was a pale pink colour with short puffed sleeves and was made of a light, flowing fabric. He supposed that it belonged to Liesl and that Maria had borrowed it to wear in the hot weather.

The words that he had spoken to Baroness Schräder just a short while earlier immediately ran back through his mind: '_what is a divine dress without an equally radiant woman to wear it?_' The compliment seemed far more real now - Maria did look radiant. Her face was flushed in the heat and the sunlight glinted off her hair - she looked absolutely beautiful.

He watched as she leaned forwards from the tree slightly and looked across the lake at the children, seeming oblivious to his presence. Her face broke into a smile as she watched them playing for a few minutes before returning her attention back to the guitar that she was holding. She seemed to be struggling to play something - he watched as she strummed several notes, listening carefully and then humming a tune. Whatever it was she seemed determined to get it right, and frustrated with herself that she could not find quite the right notes.

Georg took a couple of steps closer, moving to stand beside another tree just behind her. From there he could hear as she sang the verse of a song quietly under her breath, strumming her fingers back across the strings of the guitar.

"Edelweiss, Edelweiss, every morning you greet me..."

Georg's heart swelled with affection as he listened to her trying to play the song that he so loved, and one that to him represented something quintessentially Austrian.

"Small and white, clean and bright..." she sighed loudly as she missed a note on the guitar. He supposed that she had only heard the song the one time that he had played it to her, and it touched him that she should go to such great effort to play it herself.

"Small and white, clean and bright..." she missed the note again and sighed even more loudly this time. Georg felt another smile spread across his face, and before he could even think about what he was doing, found himself stepping out from behind the tree towards her with the words,

"Let me help you with that."


	4. Chapter 4

_THREE_

"_Let me help you with that." _

The words startled Maria and she immediately spun around to see who it was, though the sudden quickening of her pulse at the sound of his deep baritone voice left her in no real doubt.

"Oh, Captain!" she exclaimed in surprise. She had no idea that he had even returned from town yet, let alone that he was in the grounds. He smiled at her, and as usual she felt her face begin to redden.

"Forgive me for disturbing you Fraulein," he said matter-of-factly, "I merely came out to see that the children were... _enjoying their swimming_..." he raised his eyebrows.

"Oh, well they were suffering so much in the heat that I thought-" she interrupted him quickly, certain that swimming in lakes was not an activity which children of an aristocratic family should _ever_ be seen doing, but determined to justify herself anyway before he began lecturing her. He surprised her again by holding up his hand and laughing.

"As much as it may surprise you Fraulein," he continued good-humouredly, "For once I did _not_ intend to reprimand you…. Whilst swimming in the lake is a rather... _unconventional_ activity, I have to say that in this weather I rather envy them!"

Indeed he did seem to be rather affected by the heat. Maria had never seen him without a jacket and tie before and his shirt was clinging slightly to his chest. His hair was also rather ruffled as though he had run his hands through it several times and then not bothered to comb it. It gave him a slightly roguish appearance, which, she begrudgingly admitted to herself, just made him look all the more handsome. As soon as the thought crossed her mind she forced her gaze away from him and back onto the children, telling herself once more that it was _highly_ inappropriate for her to consider her employer 'handsome', and besides, as a committed future nun, there was no place in her life for handsome men anyway.

This handsome man however seemed determined to be in her life for at least while longer.

"May I?" she turned back around to see him gesturing at the ground beside her, asking her permission to sit down.

"Of course, Captain," she replied. A part of her was suddenly certain that she should get up to leave - he had a unique way to make her feel emotions which were dangerous and unfamiliar, especially when they were just in each other's company - but as she watched him lean back against the tree and stretch his legs out in front of him, that part was drowned out by a sudden compulsion just to be near him.

"Tell me Fraulein," he said, fixing his gaze on her, "Whose idea was it to go swimming?"

She wasn't really sure why he was asking her, after all, he had just said that he had not come to reprimand her, and she could not resist teasing him slightly: "Well you see on this particular day the children had little enthusiasm for _'marching about the grounds, breathing deeply'_..." she quoted his previous words back at him and saw his eyes widen slightly in surprise before he laughed again.

"Can a man not be allowed to forget any of his mistakes, Fraulein?" he asked, smiling.

She smiled back at him, thinking how different he was now from the stern disciplinarian with his orders and whistles who she had first met when arriving at the villa.

"Now then," he continued, leaning forwards and picking up her guitar, "Let me show you."

He strummed his fingers slowly across the strings before quietly beginning to sing.

The song obviously meant a great deal to him - Maria could hear as much in his voice as it rose and fell through the verses, making the performance one of the most poignant things she had ever witnessed. She felt a lump rise in her throat as she watched him, the music stripping away the aristocratic pretentions of his titles and leaving just the very essence of the man behind.

The sight held her spell-bound, and she suddenly felt very privileged that he would sing for her alone.

He kept his eyes fixed on the guitar all the way through the song, but as he finished the last note he lifted his gaze to look at her. In that instant she felt suddenly closer to him than she ever had before. In all the time they had spent together over the last few weeks – all the late night and early morning walks around the grounds when they would just _happen_ to end up together, the long conversations they had entertained about topics entirely unrelated to her governess' duties, and even in those moments she would later refuse to think about, when he would tease her in that wicked way he often did, or she when would catch herself admiring him or thinking about him in ways she most _definitely_ ought not to have been- she had never before felt quite as connected to Georg Von Trapp as she did in that moment. Her throat constricted over any words she might have wanted to say, and it seemed that he could not think of any either, for they sat, simply staring at each other, until eventually the Captain broke the silence with a slightly sheepish smile and the words:

"You try - play it slowly and I'll show you the notes."

Maria nodded and reached out for the guitar, not daring to meet his gaze as she settled it across her lap. She was a little self-conscious at first, acutely aware of how intensely he was watching, but her confidence grew as she went through the verses.

It took three renditions of the song before Maria could play every note correctly. The Captain was a good teacher, correcting the few parts that she played out of tune, and by her third time through he simply sat back and listened.

"...bless my homeland forever." She reached the last line and finally looked up. He smiled at her.

"Thank you Fraulein," he said softly.

"Thank you?" she echoed, "What for? It was you who taught me to play!"

The Captain shrugged, looking suddenly slightly uncomfortable as though he was once again not quite sure what to say.

"Oh for a few things..." he replied casually at last, "You have a very beautiful voice."

She felt herself reddening again both at the compliment and the intensity in his words. Quickly she looked back across the lake at the children.

"They seem to be having a marvellous time," she said, steering the conversation back to a safer topic.

"Yes," the Captain agreed, "I am rather tempted to join them myself!"

Maria closed her eyes for a second, silently praying to God that he would do no such thing.

"I don't think I have ever known it to be this hot in Salzburg," he went on, sounding irritable now, "If this weather doesn't change soon then I think we may all have to emigrate…! How do you fancy re-locating to cooler climes, Fraulein?"

She laughed and looked back towards him. He was undoing the top buttons of his shirt and had rolled up his sleeves to the elbows.

"That is quite appealing, Captain," she replied honestly, "It certainly is terribly warm."

They sat for a few moments in companionable silence, both looking towards the children to avoid looking at each other, before Maria remembered something that she had been intending to ask him.

"Captain?" she turned back towards him and felt her heart skip a beat again as his eyes instantly flicked to hers, "I wanted to ask you about the arrangements for the children this evening." He frowned slightly so she prompted him with: "You informed me yesterday that you and Baroness Schräder are to be entertaining friends of yours..."

He interrupted with a slight groan. "Yes of course, Fraulein," he said, "I had mercifully forgotten for a moment…."

"I assume that the children and I will be eating separately?" Maria asked when he said nothing further, "Or do you intend for us to take dinner with your guests?"

The Captain laughed, "No," he replied, shaking his head, "I most certainly will _not_ permit the children to dine with these _particular_ guests!"

"Is there..." Maria searched for the right words, "Some problem with them Captain?"

He smiled, "Only if you can call an insatiable appetite for gossip-mongering and scandal a problem, Fraulein," he paused and then answered her questioning look with, "Lieutenant Steiner has quite a... _reputation_ both for being involved in scandal himself, and for never forgetting a scandal anyone _else_ has ever been involved in."

"Ah, I see," Maria replied, though she was not sure that she did completely see at all.

"I don't think he is much used to children," the Captain elaborated, "And I have yet to know him tell a story which I would not consider it wholly inappropriate for even the eldest to hear."

"Is he really so bad?"

The Captain shrugged, "Perhaps I'm being a little harsh," he admitted, "After all we _have_ had many good times together… it's just that he never grew out of them, I suppose," he paused, "And he is certainly the kind of man who I would be horrified if my daughters became embroiled with and ashamed of my sons if they grew up to be like!"

"I'll take dinner with the children earlier then," Maria said after another pause. She was suddenly curious about this Lieutenant Steiner - he sounded so unlike both the Captain and Herr Dettwelier.

"Good," he agreed, "Then perhaps the children could be briefly introduced - I suppose it would be impolite for them not to make an appearance at all…." he smirked suddenly, "Just make sure that they do not stay around long enough for Christoph to decide that they should hear any stories about their father!"

"Stories, Captain?" Maria could not resist teasing him slightly, her curiosity inevitably aroused. The Captain laughed again, though the sheepish smile was back.

"Nothing too scandalous, Fraulein," he tried to reassure her, though she suspected that their definitions of 'too scandalous' might differ somewhat. She raised an eyebrow at him, and was amused as she watched him shift uncomfortably. "Let's just say that at some points in my life I did not always find it so easy to resist _every_ one of the seven deadly sins!"

'_Gluttony, greed, sloth, __pride…'_ the names flitted through her mind at a speed even Sister Berthe would have been proud of, _'Envy, wrath, and…'_

His eyes sparkled at her.

_Lust._

Perhaps that was what he was thinking of.

"Well I think there are times in all of our lives Captain, when the good Lord does not make it so easy for us to resist those temptations."

The instant the words were out of her mouth she regretted saying them aloud. They were undeniably true though, and she knew precisely why she had said them - at that very moment, with him sitting just a few feet away from her and looking so wickedly, devilishly handsome, they had never been more apt. She blushed even deeper, once again cursing her running mouth as the expression in his eyes changed to one of amusement.

"Is that so, Fraulein?" his tone was playful now - clearly he had noticed her discomfort and she was sure he must also know _exactly_ what she was thinking.

"Yes, well I… um..." she implored her mind to think of some witty response – or if not witty, at least intelligible - but just found herself trailing off into silence. The Captain raised an eyebrow and smiled, a teasing, wicked smile which she had never seen before, and which made her feel distinctly uncomfortable.

She leant forwards and reached for the bowl of water and wash cloth that she had brought outside. She couldn't bear to watch him looking at her like that for even a moment longer, and spread some water quickly across her face and neck, trying in vain to cool her skin which suddenly felt as though it was on fire. All the while she could feel him staring at her and though she wanted to turn away, her eyes soon traitorously found their way back to his face.

Nothing could have prepared her for the intensity of his gaze. Indeed she had always been rather scornful of such things when Josephine would read aloud from eminently unsuitable books which she had sometimes smuggled into the abbey. Rather starry-eyed at the best of times, she would read out some of the century's finest romantic nonsense as though it should have been appendix-ed to the Bible as the very word of God.

'_And with a flutter of her heart and a flurry in her stomach, she felt her breath catch,' _she would read of the heroine's first encounter with her usually rather saccharine hero, '_His eyes were as two stars hanging in the darkness, burning and smouldering with such passion as she had never seen before. She would know nothing in the world but those eyes, hanging before her and burning with all the luminosity of a sun. He swept away all intelligent thought, all ability to speak, think, act, or even breathe...'_

"Well I'm sure _I_ would never be so feeble-minded around a man!" Maria had once scoffed, thoroughly disputing every line as an utter impossibility.

But that afternoon, staring into the eyes of the decidedly less-than-saccharine Georg Von Trapp, such literature was proved rather more than just romantic nonsense after all. If Josephine had been there at that moment, she would have pointed her finger at them gleefully, and declared that her friend now had more than enough evidence - and evidence of the best and most overwhelming kind - to refute every one of her claims.

"You are absolutely right Fraulein," the Captain spoke very softly and Maria struggled to concentrate on his words, "And sometimes they are the most exquisite times of our lives..."

_Exquisite_. He was exquisite - exquisite, handsome, perfect and dangerous - very, very dangerous.

He began to move slowly closer - little by little as though he didn't quite know what he was doing.

She certainly had no idea what _she_ was doing. Just like the heroine in Josephine's novels, she was thoroughly and utterly overwhelmed by him, and wondered if she _could_ move even if she wanted to.

And she was not at all sure that she _did_ want to either - his look both terrified and completely exhilarated her.

He reached his hand up towards her and brushed it slowly across her cheek.

The blue of his eyes was darker than she had ever seen it. She heard a soft sigh escape from his mouth and her eyes dropped to his lips as they came nearer to her own...


	5. Chapter 5

_Just wanted to say a quick (but very heartfelt!) thank you to everyone who is reading this story. A special thanks for the reviews too – I really appreciate them. _

_FOUR_

Max Dettwelier had to blink several times at the scene in front of him before he could believe what he was seeing. He had taken his leave from Elsa so she could try on her new dress and had decided to take a walk out into the grounds to escape the stuffy confines of the villa. He had expected to find just the children and Fraulein Maria, but could not honestly say that he was terribly surprised to see Georg outside too, despite what the Captain had said about needing to get some work done in his study. When he actually laid eyes on the pair though, the question Elsa had asked him ran back through his mind immediately - this time his answer was an unequivocal 'yes'.

They were sitting on the grass underneath one of the trees just in front of the gazebo, neither speaking, just staring at one another with such intensity that it was almost uncomfortable to watch. Georg seemed to have misplaced his jacket and tie and the impresario noticed with surprise that he had even gone so far as to roll up his shirt sleeves and undo the top two buttons.

Max took a sharp breath as Georg lifted a hand towards Maria, brushing it slowly across her cheek as he leant towards her.

Surely he could not be going to kiss her? For quite apart from the countless reasons why he most definitely should _not_ be kissing Maria in the first place - foremost that he was practically engaged to another woman and she was a committed future nun who was his children's governess - at this particular moment they were also in the middle of the grounds and therefore potentially in full view of everyone.

"_Georg_!"

Immediately he began walking towards them, determined to prevent Georg from making such a mistake. He knew the outcome could only be disastrous, not just to Elsa when she inevitably found out, but also to Maria when she came to her senses.

Thankfully, Max was saved from disturbing the couple himself. In fact he had hardly crossed ten paces towards the tree when a sudden cry of: "Father! Fraulein Maria!" rang through the air. The impresario was sure that he had never been as fond of Gretl as he was in that moment as the little girl ran past him, oblivious to what she was interrupting. The shout seemed to jolt Georg back to his senses and Max watched in amusement as he quickly dropped his hand away from Maria and spun around to meet his youngest daughter.

"Come and see what Friedrich has found!" Gretl exclaimed excitedly, running up to him and taking his hand. Georg took a deep breath as though to steady himself.

"Of course, darling..." he sounded slightly disorientated and turned to stand up, running a hand through his hair.

The second the two men made eye contact, Georg froze in place.

Max had never seen his friend look so awkward before, he decided with a slight smirk, and nodded a greeting, his smile leaving the Captain in no doubt that his _exchange_ with Maria had not gone unnoticed. Maria, for her part, was still sitting on the grass, though she too had now turned around. The poor girl looked rather bewildered - as though she had just discovered fire and almost been burned.

"Uncle Max!" Gretl's enthusiasm had not waned at all for the lack of reaction she had received from either her governess or her father, "Friedrich found an old anchor in the lake and he and Kurt..." she carried on chattering away and Max chuckled, for the first time in his life blessing the absolute innocence of childhood, as he allowed himself to be led over towards the lakeside.

He opened his mouth as he drew level with Georg, but was met with a murderous glower and a muttered, "Not one word, Max!"

"Look, Fraulein Maria, Father... Uncle Max," Friedrich had come over now, proudly clutching a rusted anchor that he had apparently retrieved from the lake bed.

"That's very interesting Friedrich," Maria replied, walking in front of them quickly and reaching out her hand for the anchor, "However did you find it?"

He watched as she seemed to listen in rapt attention to what the boy was saying, though he was sure that she was taking in just as little of it as Georg was. The Captain studiously avoided everyone's gaze, instead fixing his attention on his shirt sleeves as he rolled them back down to their full length. Max suppressed a chuckle, turning it into a cough at another glance from his friend.

"I take it the heat was getting to you?" he asked would-be-innocently as Georg re-did his top buttons.

Maria flinched slightly.

"I think perhaps it's time that the children returned to their studies," Georg declared, turning back towards them. This time it was Maria who did not meet his gaze. He motioned for the children to make their way inside, ignoring their protests of 'please, just a few more minutes Father!'

Maria began to follow them inside, though her step faltered slightly as she passed Max and Georg. Max wondered whether the Captain might have wanted to speak to her, perhaps to explain himself, but he refused to leave until he had said a few choice words to Georg himself.

As soon as Maria and the children were safely back in the house, Max turned towards his friend.

"For heaven's sake, Georg, she is going to be a _nun_!"

"Max!" Georg exclaimed, "There is absolutely nothing-"

"Ha! _Absolutely nothing_?" Max interrupted him, "Come now Georg! I'm sure _Elsa_ would not say that if she had seen the way you were practically... devouring the Fraulein with your gaze and you nearly-"

"MAX!" Georg exclaimed again. His eyes flashed as he rounded on the impresario, "You have expressed your concern and it is duly noted-"

"We are not on one of your ships now Georg," Max felt his temper begin to rise, "And you-"

"No we most certainly are not!" Elsa's voice suddenly cut through the air, and both men spun around in horror to see her descending the steps onto the terrace.

"Whatever are you two arguing about?" she asked, though thankfully her tone was light-hearted.

Georg had the good grace to look guilty even as he fired another warning glance in Max's direction. The impresario was not about to betray anything to Elsa though, and nodded in agreement with Georg's swift: "Oh, nothing at all, darling!"

"I think the heat is just getting to all of us," Max added awkwardly as Elsa raised her eyebrows slightly.

"Yes, it is frightfully warm!" she replied, "And you look rather... _frazzled_ darling..." she purred towards the Captain. Georg could only manage a strained smile by way of explanation as she leant up to kiss him on the cheek and Max let out a quiet sigh.

"_Yes, Elsa, my dear_," he said to himself, "_You most definitely _should_ be worried_."

...

It took a good couple of hours before the children began to resemble those of a wealthy Austrian aristocrat again, and a large part of Maria was heartily glad. With the little ones to help dress, the boys to keep in check, five girls' hair to help braid and the inevitable discussion with Liesl over which dress would be most appropriate for the girl to wear that evening, she found that she hardly had a second of free time to think about what had happened between her and the Captain. Eventually however, all of the children were dressed smartly again, and Maria ushered them into the school room despite complaints from many of them that it was still too hot to be inside.

"Now, children," Maria said firmly, pushing open all of the windows to try and let as much air in as possible, "You promised me that you would concentrate on your studies for the rest of the afternoon if I allowed you to play in the lake, didn't you?"

She was met with seven rather resigned looks, but inwardly breathed a sigh of relief as the children begrudgingly returned to the studies that she had assigned them that morning.

Maria took a seat near one of the open windows and looked out across the grounds. She could just about make out the tree that they had been sitting under and frowned slightly as she saw it.

_What on earth had almost happened out there? _

Had_ he been about to kiss her?_

But no, that was an absolutely preposterous idea, she immediately decided. Georg Von Trapp would _not_ kiss _her_! She was to be a nun; he was to marry Baroness Schrader…! No, it was just her imagination running away with itself.

She dismissed the incident from her mind with her usual determination, turning her attention instead to the dress she was struggling to finish for the next day. The sleeves were still not quite right, she decided, and it was imperative that she concentrate all of her attention upon fixing them, for she was sure that the following day would be completely taken up with the final preparations for the ball. No, there was no time at all to think about the Captain – heaven knew she had already wasted enough time on him that summer!

In fact, a rather cynical observer might well have commented that if there was one thing which Captain Georg Von Trapp shared in common with his children's governess, it was his spectacular ability to distract himself when he did not want to think about something. For the Captain it had been the glitz and glamour of Vienna - days of soaking himself in champagne and stumbling about to half-remembered waltzes had occupied his mind far more pleasantly than worrying about happenings at home. It had of course been Maria who had finally made him face up to what he was doing, and it seemed that it would take an equally momentous occurrence – namely an enchanting dance and the deviousness of the formidable Baroness Schrader – before she herself would think properly about what was happening that summer.

But until then, there was _plenty_ to distract herself with… though she _would_ take a day off and go up to her beloved mountains, she decided as she threaded a needle, just as soon as the ball was over. If there was anything left to think about she would do so then, far away from the villa and its enigmatic owner.

"Fraulein Maria…" she was jolted out of her musings, "Is it really true that we shall be introduced to Lieutenant Steiner?" the question came from Liesl, but all of the other children immediately looked around.

"I told you Liesl," she answered, looking up from the dress, "Your father said that he wished you to briefly meet his guests, but that we would not be dining with them..."

Liesl smiled, her eyes lighting up, "Oh, I wonder if he is as handsome as they say he is Fraulein!"

Maria chuckled, "I wouldn't know, Liesl, but-"

"I heard that he was the handsomest man in the Navy," she gushed.

_Not likely, _Maria thought as an image of the Captain immediately crossed her mind. She instantly felt horrified with herself.

"And apparently he looks just like Hans König!" Liesl continued, referring to the film star heart-throb.

Kurt groaned as Liesl looked dreamily towards the wall of the study-room, her mind evidently filled with her fantasy of just what Lieutenant Steiner might look like. Maria opened her mouth to reply, but Louisa had already burst into a laugh.

"_Oh, and isn't he just the handsomest man in the _world_, Fraulein_?" she was clearly mocking her older sister, and Liesl immediately turned to glare at her, "Do you think he is even more handsome than Rolfe, Liesl?"

The other children all laughed now, their work forgotten as Liesl flushed pink and continued to glare towards her sister.

"Don't you think he's handsome, Fraulein?" the eldest girl appealed to Maria.

"Oh I don't know Liesl, in the abbey we were, I mean, _are_... discouraged from seeing men in that way."

"You mean you have _never_ found a man handsome before, Fraulein?"

Liesl had a rather mischievous look on her face now.

Maria shifted uncomfortably at the question, feeling immediately guilty.

"Not even _Hans König_, Fraulein?"

Her thoughts were once again interrupted by Louisa and Brigitta's derisive impression of their older sister:

"With his _dreamy_ eyes..."

_Dreamy, dark, midnight blue eyes..._

"And _gorgeous_ smile..."

_Gorgeous, wicked, teasing smile that she had never seen him wear before..._

"And _kissable_ lips..."

Kurt made a fake vomiting noise from the corner.

"Oh, stop it!" Liesl exclaimed suddenly, jolting Maria out of her reverie. She felt her face flush once again as she returned her attention to the children.

Louisa and Brigitta were both kneeling on the floor, their hands clasped across their chests as they pretended to extol the attributes of Hans König. Marta and Gretl, despite being too young to really understand, were still giggling along with them, and Friedrich, bored with the conversation, had returned his attention to the anchor which, unbeknownst to Maria, he had been studying since entering the school-room.

Despite her younger sisters' teasing, Maria saw a flash of amusement pass over Liesl's face, and was relieved that the oldest girl could see the humour in the situation.

"Come on now, children..." she began again.

"You must think he is handsome too, Fraulein," Brigitta ignored her, "Your face is red."

Maria willed herself not to flush any deeper.

"You see!" Liesl exclaimed, "You are just too young to appreciate handsome men!" she turned contemptuously away from her sister.

"I shall _never_ appreciate Rolfe, no matter how old I get!" Brigitta retorted immediately.

Before Liesl could make any kind of come back, Maria called for quiet.

"I think this conversation is getting a little out of hand," she said calmly, "And is _certainly_ not at all helpful to your studies..."

"But the Franco-Prussian war is so boring, Fraulein!" Louisa interjected, "At least Liesl can dream of marrying Rolfe or Hans König, or Lieutenant Steiner, or..."

The children laughed again as Maria's look caused Louisa to fall back into silence.

"All I know about Lieutenant Steiner, Liesl, is that he is much too old for you," Maria said, returning to the original question and trying to ensure that the girl did not waste any more time thinking about the man, who, for all of the Captain's descriptions, sounded far too much like a rogue for Maria's comfort.

"Oh, I know Fraulein, I-" she was interrupted by a sudden tap at the half-open door of the school room.

Maria looked up to see the Captain standing in the doorway, now dressed in a dark grey suit. His eyes met hers, and immediately she saw something flicker across his expression before he deliberately broke her gaze and turned towards the children.

There were several exclamations of "Father!" as he stepped into the school room.

"I came to see that anchor, Friedrich," he said, walking across the room to where his eldest son was sitting, the anchor resting on his knees. The boy proudly lifted his prize and passed it across.

"This really is a very good find!" he said a second later, sounding genuinely impressed.

"I helped him get it out of the mud!" interjected Kurt.

The Captain turned and ruffled his younger son's hair, "Then well done to both of you," he said. "I think we should get this polished up then," he continued after a pause, "And see whether it has any kind of markings on it..."

He turned towards Maria and smiled at her, his eyes twinkling: "But of course we will have to ask Fraulein Maria for her permission," his tone was suddenly the same teasing one that he had used earlier, "I'm sure you don't mind the boys missing an hour of study, do you Fraulein?"

"I... no...um, of course not, Captain," she could hardly think what she was saying. With just one smile and a look he seemed suddenly capable of rendering her mute. Sister Berthe would have declared it a miracle.

"But, Father," Brigitta chimed in, "We don't want to study either!"

The Captain shrugged. He looked around at the assembled children and then back at Maria.

"How about we give them the afternoon off?" he asked her with a grin.

She opened her mouth to reply, but was drowned out by exclamations of "Thank you, Father!" as the children all jumped to their feet. Maria could not help but laugh herself at their beaming faces as they began excitedly moving around the school room, books happily forgotten once more.

"I assume you _don't_ mind Fraulein?" he was suddenly right beside her - why did he have to stand so close?

"Not... not at all Captain," she managed, "In fact they have been quite distracted this afternoon..."

He laughed.

"Fraulein Maria?" Louisa asked, "Can we practise the song you taught us for the ball?"

Maria opened her mouth to answer, but her words turned into a swallow as the Captain suddenly leant closer to her, practically whispering in her ear:

"I can sympathise, Fraulein," she felt the warmth of his breath tickling her ear and suddenly shivered, "Dreamy eyes, gorgeous smiles and kissable lips... can be most _incredibly_ distracting..."

She was stunned by his words. He pulled away from her and for a brief moment she was sure she could see the same look in his eyes that he had captivated her with earlier. A second later however the look was gone, and instead he was smiling in that lop-sided way he often did when he was teasing her. With a wink he abruptly turned away, no doubt passing his comment off as joke. To Maria however it most _certainly_ did not feel that way and she stood mute for a few moments, struggling to take a breath.

"Fraulein Maria?" Brigitta had come up beside her, "Are you alright?"

"Yes, yes of course!" Maria forced her mind back to the children, disliking the knowing look she saw on the girl's face, "Just let me get my guitar..."


	6. Chapter 6

_FIVE_

The Captain's guests arrived just after Maria and the children had finished taking their dinner in the kitchen. The children stood, arrayed in a long line against one wall of the foyer, waiting to welcome them. At first glance, the scene looked horribly similar to the one which had greeted Maria when she had arrived at the villa, only this time they were not standing in age order, there was not a uniform in sight, and the children were at ease, smiling and talking quietly to one another. Maria stood slightly off to one side, nearest to Liesl at the far end of the row. She could practically feel the excitement radiating from the girl who was leaning forwards to try and catch a glimpse of the arrivals as the door to the villa was opened.

The first person to enter the hallway was a fairly elderly man, who Maria assumed was Herr Ebner, followed by a woman slightly younger than him who was sure to be his wife. They were immediately greeted by the Captain and Herr Dettwelier and after a warm handshake were introduced by the Captain to Baroness Schräder. The Baroness looked stunning and had dressed for dinner with seemingly no thought for the heat - Maria was privately amazed that she could wear the dark blue floor-length dress without being at all affected.

Whilst the Baroness greeted Herr and Frau Ebner, whom she had never met before, Maria's gaze returned to the door which had just been re-opened to admit a younger man who was undoubtedly Lieutenant Steiner. She heard Liesl's excited whisper to Louisa of "See! I told you he was handsome!" and flashed the girls a warning glance. Liesl did not seem to heed this however, and Maria sighed softly as she watched the girl stand slightly on her tiptoes to get a better view.

Lieutenant Steiner _was_ quite good-looking; Maria mused analytically as she watched him kiss the Baroness' cheek in greeting, and with his fair hair, bright blue eyes and slim figure, he did bear more than a passing resemblance to Hans König, however seeing him standing next to the Captain... well, she was beginning to wonder if _any_ other man could look at all handsome in comparison. She noticed too, in some surprise, that he was dressed in his Navy uniform, with a single medal pinned to his right pocket.

Even as Maria was thinking this, it seemed that the Lieutenant was already living up to his flamboyant reputation, as she heard a rather bombastic roar of laughter and the words: "You have certainly done very well for yourself, Georg!" spoken in a much louder voice than she had been expecting. Maria found herself taking an instant disliking to him.

"Yes, it is a very beautiful house you have here," Herr Ebner was much more softly spoken as he turned around slowly, taking in the foyer and its beautiful crystal chandelier. His eyes of course finally alighted on the children who immediately stiffened slightly despite his kind smile.

"May I present my children?" the Captain declared, descending from the stairs, and offering his arm to the Baroness.

"Ah, yes!" Lieutenant Steiner exclaimed, still in the same booming voice, "The famous Von Trapp brood!" Maria frowned slightly, as he came to stand in front of the children and made a show of counting them, "Seven, indeed, Georg!" he declared, turning to the Captain with a mischievous smile, "A sure sign of _superb_ masculine virility… and _enthusiasm_!" he laughed again and raised his eyebrows towards Elsa, ensuring that the tasteless implication was not lost on her. Maria assumed they must have met before.

"This is Gretl, my youngest, then Marta, Brigitta, Kurt, Louisa, Friedrich and Liesl," the Captain introduced them, smiling proudly as each child in turn nodded their head towards the guests.

"It is a pleasure to meet you, Herr Ebner, Lieutenant Steiner, Frau Ebner," Friedrich stepped forwards with a bow, sounding very much the young man he was becoming.

Maria smiled to herself as she saw a momentary flash of surprise pass across the Captain's face, to be replaced a second later with a look of pride in his eldest son.

"It is indeed a great pleasure," Herr Ebner declared smiling warmly, "I have not seen you since the week you were born Liesl," he continued, turning towards the girl as Friedrich stepped back into line, "You have grown into a very beautiful young woman. How old are you now?"

"I'm sixteen," Liesl replied, "Nearly seventeen," she added hastily. Maria watched as her eyes flicked quickly towards Lieutenant Steiner. Evidently he had noticed, and with a slight smirk, flashed her a wink. Maria heard Liesl's excited intake of breath as the Lieutenant turned away and felt her own eyes widen slightly at the exchange. She immediately turned towards the Captain who - for once - mercifully seemed to have seen nothing.

"And this is Fraulein Maria," he continued before pausing slightly as though not quite sure how to introduce her. She refused to meet his gaze.

"The children's governess."

"It is very good to meet you," Maria replied with a smile. Herr and Frau Ebner nodded pleasantly, whilst, to Maria's surprise, Lieutenant Steiner stepped towards her, took her hand, and bent over to kiss it softly.

"Enchantée, mademoiselle," he winked again.

She gave him a forced smile in return, and extricated her hand from his grasp as quickly as possible.

"I hear that you have done wonders with the children, Fraulein," Frau Ebner addressed her.

Maria immediately shook her head slightly, "They are fantastic children, Frau Ebner," she replied.

Lieutenant Steiner laughed, "Ah, but the exploits of the Von Trapp children and their governesses were becoming legendary, Fraulein!" he said. Maria was relieved to hear a few stifled giggles from behind her, "And with seven of them all just as formidable as their father, it must take a strong woman _indeed_ to keep them in order!"

If the Captain had said such a thing to her then she might have joked with him as she had earlier about 'the first rule in the house' being 'discipline', but she resented both Lieutenant Steiner's tone and the overtly appraising glance which had accompanied his words.

"Not at all, Lieutenant. They are a credit to their father," she found herself replying before the Captain could do as much as open his mouth.

She met his gaze evenly, seeing a flicker of surprise pass across his face before his smirking smile was back.

"As I say, a strong woman _indeed_ Georg," he said a few seconds later, briefly raising his eyebrows back in the Captain's direction.

"I am sure they will do you very proud, Georg," Frau Ebner continued.

"They already do," the Captain said softly, appearing lost in thought for a moment before he suddenly seemed to snap back to the present, "Right, well I think it is time that the children went to bed, and that we avail ourselves of the cook's delicacies...!" He addressed his guests, and Maria immediately moved towards the children, beginning to shepherd them slowly towards the stairs.

As the younger ones bid their father goodnight, she turned back around, intending to make her own farewells, when suddenly the Baroness, who had temporarily relinquished her grip on the Captain's arm, took her by the hand.

"My dear Fraulein," she said, "It seems splendidly unfair that you must retire so early, doesn't it Georg?"

The Captain turned to them in surprise.

"Oh no, Baroness," Maria hastily reassured her, "Not at all - I have the children to attend to and I-"

"Don't be ridiculous, my dear!" she interrupted, "You simply must come and join us after our meal!" Her expression was inscrutable.

"That's very kind of you to offer, Baroness, but I really-"

"No, please do join us Fraulein," Lieutenant Steiner interrupted her for a second time, "I imagine you will make most fascinating company…" he smirked.

"_Georg_?" the Baroness tried again in a more coquettish tone of voice.

Maria looked at the Captain helplessly. He was frowning at Steiner.

"Well I..." he began, sounding rather reluctant.

She watched as he regarded her carefully, almost begrudgingly, and suddenly she felt as far away from him as she had close to him earlier that afternoon.

It was a disturbingly unpleasant return to reality.

"Honestly, Captain, it is very kind of you but-" she began again.

"Nonsense, my dear," the Baroness interjected yet again, "I'm sure that Georg will be most _delighted_ to have your company." There was a slight edge to her tone now, and Maria saw the Captain's eyes narrow slightly. She looked between them in bewilderment, having no idea why Elsa was so keen to have her join them. The Baroness had always seemed coolly indifferent to her before, and certainly it seemed very out of character for her to invite the 'help' as she had once put it, to take drinks with her guests.

The Captain now seemed to have no choice but to agree.

"Well of course you may Fraulein, if you like."

He sounded rather irritated and her heart sank slightly.

"Excellent!" Elsa exclaimed, clapping her hands and reaching up to kiss the Captain on the cheek. He nodded rather stiffly and Maria could not help but notice that there was no trace of anything like the look he had given her earlier, even as Elsa ran her hand down his jacket sleeve to take his arm once more.

"Come down when you are finished with the children," the Baroness instructed her, suddenly sounding far more like her usual self.

"I... okay." Maria could not really think of anything else to say.

"Dinner is served," Franz had suddenly appeared in the foyer, and after a nod from the Captain began to lead the guests towards the dining room.

"Come along children," Maria gathered the children together and began to lead them towards the stairs, her mind still in rather a blur.

"Goodnight Father," they called back, "Goodnight Baroness Schräder."

"Goodnight," the Captain replied, and then answered Liesl's look with: "Absolutely out of the question!" before the girl could even ask if she could be permitted to return later with Maria. Liesl's face fell, and Maria squeezed her arm comfortingly.

As they reached the top of the stairs however, she heard the Captain's voice.

"Fraulein?" he called her. She ushered the children on ahead and turned back towards him. It appeared that Baroness Schräder had followed the others into the dining room for he was standing alone in the hallway.

"Thank you," he said slightly awkwardly.

"What for?" she asked.

"For what you said about the children," he paused, "It means a great deal to me."

She nodded mutely.

"I will... see you later, then Fraulein," he continued.

"If you're sure it's appropriate, Captain, I do not wish to intrude-"

"You could never intrude, Fraulein." The intensity was back, as was the sudden fluttering in her stomach.

"Thank you, Captain," she replied softly. He nodded to her and held her gaze for another few seconds before walking quickly back towards the dining room.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Baroness Elsa Schräder was most definitely at her best when surrounded by company. She had spent many years cultivating her reputation as Vienna's most illustrious socialite, and it showed. Indeed, she was positively glowing for most of the meal as the conversation, and the wine, flowed readily. She had been the 'perfect hostess', Georg thanked her quietly at the end of the meal, and _that_, she decided as she regarded the Captain from across the table in the salon later, was exactly what was needed in the future Baroness Von Trapp.

Elsa had not realised quite how much she had been missing her usual lifestyle until that evening - spending time with Georg and his family was an honour in its own way, but Elsa did miss the gossip and pretentions of the Viennese highlife.

She had also been missing Captain Von Trapp - the Captain Von Trapp whom she had come to know in the glitzy salons of Vienna. For a while that evening, as they passed stories back and forth across the table, she had had him back, and for a time it was almost as though they were still in Vienna, without children, business or troublesome governesses to disturb them.

And she so enjoyed being the subject of Georg's attention again - he had finally turned back into the man who she had been certain could be everything that she wanted and needed in a husband. He had been more attentive towards her in those couple of hours than he had been at all in the few weeks they had spent at the villa - flirting with her, complimenting her, and even rivalling Lieutenant Steiner in his charms.

It had been the most perfect evening.

After the meal, the six of them retired into the salon, taking comfortable seats arrayed around a central table on which rested a decanter of scotch and a bottle of wine in an ice cooler.

Elsa had almost forgotten about Fraulein Maria until, after about fifteen minutes of continued small talk, the governess appeared in the room. Elsa had expected that the young woman would be reluctant to join them, that perhaps she would feel awkward or out of place intruding upon their company, but if she did, Maria showed no sign of it.

"Good evening, again!" she said brightly as she crossed the salon. Elsa noticed in annoyance that her eyes immediately flicked towards Georg's just as the Captain turned to meet her gaze. They smiled at each other and maintained eye contact for a second longer than Elsa considered appropriate.

Before Georg could say anything she interjected with: "Good evening, my dear," in her best and most simpering tone.

"Do take a seat, Fraulein," Herr Ebner said warmly, gesturing to the unoccupied chair on his right. Elsa frowned slightly as Maria thanked him and moved to sit down - the governess had ended up directly opposite Georg, from where she was certain it would be easy for the Captain's attention to stray towards her.

Christoph Steiner evidently noticed her expression and she watched as he smirked into his scotch glass.

The conversation was initially slightly strained. Steiner immediately seized on Maria's presence with his usual alacrity and began asking the governess how she was enjoying her life in the villa and whether she believed that the Von Trapp children took after their celebrated father. Maria handled his questions well – annoyingly well in fact - she was polite, yet cool, and the young woman proved once again that she could be as quick-witted as Georg himself.

And, although Elsa could not quite bring herself to think it purposeful, the governess was unwittingly doing all the right things to secure Georg's attention. Meeting his eyes quickly at the start and end of every answer, running her hands over each other in her lap, and of course wearing the same bright smile that she almost always did when he spoke… Elsa was sure that the young woman was charming the Captain quite nicely.

A little while later however, Steiner's questions inevitably became somewhat more leading, and Elsa watched in interest as Maria finally began to look uncomfortable.

"So tell me, Fraulein," he said, "Is our dear Captain as formidable an employer as he was when we were in active duty?"

"Well I don't know, Lieutenant, but I-" she began, for the first time sounding slightly hesitant.

"O-ho!" Georg interjected with a laugh, "I think it was perhaps Fraulein Maria _herself_ who was the most formidable when we met!" His eyes found hers again.

Steiner's eyebrows rose slightly at the teasing tone of the Captain's reply and the speed with which he had come to Maria's defence. His amused smirk returned.

"Is that so, Fraulein?" he asked, exchanging the briefest of glances with Elsa.

Maria had no more than a second to think of a reply, before the Captain spoke again: "And I do believe, Lieutenant, that you had left the Navy long before I became an active Captain!" His tone was good humoured, and the conversation immediately shifted away from Maria and back to their earlier reminiscing about their days at sea.

The conversation was still continuing some thirty minutes later, and Elsa felt herself becoming exasperated again. Maria had somehow become embroiled in a conversation - well more a monologue, Elsa privately thought - with Herr Ebner. The Baroness could not help but feel slightly sorry for the young woman - although she had met Herr Ebner for the first time that evening, Elsa already agreed with Max's opinion that he was a terrible bore. Max had warned her that at all costs she was to avoid mentioning anything to do with munitions manufacture, as Ebner had enough opinions about it to last for the rest of the evening. Without sufficient warning, however, it seemed that Maria had somehow managed to do exactly that, and Elsa reckoned that it had been at least ten minutes since the governess had contributed one word to the conversation. She was acutely aware too that Maria's full attention was not focussed on the subject of Ebner's ramblings, and indeed, Elsa supposed that she could hardly blame her - she was equally distracted herself by the highly compelling presence of the Captain.

Georg Von Trapp was on his finest form - he was witty, funny and a most sensational raconteur, sparring good-naturedly with both Max and Christoph Steiner as the three men recounted many of their experiences in the Navy. Even she, Elsa Schräder, with all of her experience of society and numerous encounters with men trying to win her affections, found the Captain utterly irresistible when he was like this. He exuded a confident charm and a very masculine appeal, which Elsa found a potent combination. So too, it seemed, did Fraulein Maria. Elsa had now seen the younger woman's eyes flick in the direction of the Captain more than a dozen times, each time the look on her face being one which Elsa was sure she should not be seeing in a future nun.

Her plan was spectacularly backfiring, she decided grimly, and she could not even really blame Steiner - aside from the fact that he was probably unaware of her intentions, the conversation was still focussed on the three men's later days at sea, when Georg had been happily married and therefore immune to any kind of scandal.

"So how long did you serve in the Navy for, Herr Ebner?" Maria seemed to have finally gotten a word in.

"Oh a good twenty years," he replied, refilling Maria's wine glass despite her mild protests, "I achieved the rank of Lieutenant Commander," he continued, "Only unlike Christoph here, _I_ do not feel the need to use my title for disreputable purposes!"

"_Disreputable purposes_!" Steiner exclaimed, pretending to be annoyed, "That is the first thing resembling a joke that I have heard from you in ten years, Andreas!" He tilted his scotch glass towards Ebner, who was laughing good-naturedly, and took a generous mouthful.

"And it is alright for you," he continued a moment later, his eyes gleaming, "You are happily married!" He inclined his glass towards Frau Ebner and bowed his head slightly, "It is the Captain and I who require the benefit of our titles now!"

"Oh I think you require it more than I do, my friend!" Georg quipped back.

"Come now, Georg," Steiner replied, refilling his own brandy glass for the third or fourth time, "I seem to recall a time in our lives when _both_ of us found it _very_ beneficial to borrow our superior officer's title for the evening...!"

Georg looked suddenly rather awkward.

"A 'trio of Parisian dancers', wasn't it Georg?" Herr Ebner chuckled, "I think I have heard this one before!"

"Yes, I think we have _all_ heard this one before," the Captain replied, in a tone plainly showing that he wished to move away from the subject as quickly as possible. Elsa however sensed the opportunity she had been waiting for all evening.

"I don't believe that I have heard anything at _all_ about Parisian dancers, darling," she purred, leaning forwards with a smile, one eye still resting on Maria. Georg's eyes flashed at her in annoyance as Steiner laughed loudly, taking another swig of brandy.

"Nevertheless-" he began, his tone now not good-humoured at all.

"Ah-ha!" Steiner exclaimed, "You mean that poor Elsa, your betrothed-to-be," Elsa watched smugly as Maria's gaze fell towards the floor, "Does not even know where you learned your 'tricks of the trade'?"

This was exactly what Elsa had been hoping for.

"I do _not_ believe that it is-"

"Oh, don't worry darling," she cooed, flashing Steiner a winning smile, "I promise I will not be _too_ scandalised!" She refused to acknowledge Max's warning glare - of course the impresario now knew exactly what she was up to.

Georg opened his mouth to protest again, his eyes flicking towards Maria, but Steiner, probably more knowing than he was letting on, would not be silenced.

"It was an autumn evening in Paris, if I recall," he began, not reacting at all to the Captain's murderous glower, "And the first shore leave for us... _inexperienced_ sailors!" Even Frau Ebner chuckled, and Elsa smiled as she saw Maria's eyes widen slightly. _Good_, she thought, Maria was listening, and had at least understood what _kind_ of inexperience Steiner was referring to.

"_Christoph_..." the Captain's warning fell on deaf – and rather intoxicated - ears.

"The Parisian women were _very_ accommodating," Steiner continued, "They do say, no one does it quite like the French, and even now I am most inclined to agree..."

"After an extensive number of comparisons, I'm sure," Max interrupted dryly, but Steiner just laughed.

"Try it sometime, Max," he replied outrageously, "You will never want to go back! Anyway," he paused, "When two '_sea Captains'_" he mimed the quotation marks with his fingers, "of the Imperial Navy came to shore, we could not believe our luck when we found a _trio_ of Parisian dancers who were more than happy to fill in some gaps in our... education!"

"How tremendously wicked of you Georg!" Elsa exclaimed, as she pretended not to notice the fire in the Captain's eyes. She laughed along with the others - even Max gave a half-hearted chuckle. Maria and Georg were the only ones to remain silent.

"Oh I am sure you will thank them for it someday, my dear," Steiner saluted Elsa with his glass again; "If you haven't already of course!" he winked at Georg. Elsa could barely contain another smile as she saw Maria look down towards the floor again. '_Perhaps not such an unblemished hero to you now, then?' _she thought vindictively. She was sure that whilst living in the abbey, Maria would never have heard such scandal.

'_Perhaps you will fear his glances now, my dear, and not crave his lustful eye!'_

"That is quite enough!" the Captain declared even more definitively now, practically slamming his own glass down on the table. Elsa had never seen him so enraged in company before.

"Oh but we are all friends here, Georg," Steiner replied, laughing his words away.

"This is an inappropriate conversation for such an evening," Georg replied firmly, his gaze instinctively returning to Maria who was still sitting silently, examining her hands intently.

Steiner caught his glance and immediately laughed, "Ah, of course," he replied, "You wouldn't want such stories spreading around your servants - I quite understand!"

"Fraulein Maria is _not_ a servant," Georg replied icily, "She is kindly on a… uh… sabbatical from Nonnberg Abbey and I-"

"The _abbey_?" Steiner exclaimed, "You mean you are a nun, my dear?" he sounded positively delighted and Elsa shook her head in amusement. Christoph Steiner revelled in being outrageous - the more outrageous the better, and certainly telling such a story in the presence of any of the sisters of Nonnberg would have been deliciously contemptible.

"Not yet," Maria replied calmly, lifting her eyes to meet his, "I am a postulant. I take my vows in September."

Steiner bowed his head towards her as Georg glared at him in warning again.

"In which case, please accept my most _humble_ apologies if I have offended you at all," he said, his tone highly patronising, "I do hope that this has not altered your opinion of our dear Captain?"

Georg's look was unfathomable - he opened his mouth to speak, but closed it as Maria's clear voice cut across the room again.

"I do not believe that _I_ am the one you have offended, Lieutenant," she replied, "And I am quite sure that there is nothing you could tell me which will affect _any_ of my opinions at all."

Steiner looked surprised for a second before laughing.

"A _nun_ indeed…!" he continued a second later, "Perhaps we had better not remember your track record when it comes to them, eh Georg?"

Elsa pricked her ears in interest – now there was something she had never heard even a _hint_ of before.

"I think you have had enough, Christoph," Georg's tone was calm, measured, and undeniably dangerous. He reached his hand out for Steiner's glass but the Lieutenant waved it away.

"Oh don't worry my dear Captain!" he drained the last of the brandy from his glass instead, "Even _I _would not be so uncouth...! And at least the good Lord has not struck you down yet!" he continued a second later before spinning back towards Maria, "I hope you do not think that likely, Fraulein?"

"I believe the Lord said that it is those who spread gossip about their neighbours who shall be punished the greatest," Maria replied evenly.

"Touché, my dear," Herr Ebner interjected, leaning forwards with a slight sigh, "Now do tell me Georg, as an educated man," he went on after a pause, "What is your view of our celebrated Chancellor Schuschnigg's efforts for Austria?"

...

"A most interesting creature, that Fraulein!" Steiner declared to Elsa a while later. The two of them were out on the terrace, having taken their leave of the others for a cigarette. Elsa certainly needed it.

"Highly spirited!" he continued enthusiastically, blowing a light puff of smoke into the air and turning towards her, "I wonder that she is destined to become a nun-"

"She may still not at this rate," Elsa interrupted him icily.

"Aha!" Steiner sounded positively delighted at her tone, "You mean if our dear Georg has anything to do with it?"

"I wish you would not sound so delighted at the prospect," the Baroness replied testily, "He seems... utterly infatuated with her!" She had known Christoph Steiner for many years, and had they had confided in each other on several occasions - despite his pretentions and outrageous behaviour, she considered him a very good friend.

Steiner laughed and her irritation mounted. She stabbed the end of her cigarette angrily on the stone balustrade that they were standing against. He looked surprised.

"I have never seen you like this before, my dear," he said lightly, "Especially not because of a man!"

"He is no ordinary man," she replied, "And you would not believe the _tension_ I can sometimes feel between them..."

"Yes," he agreed, replacing her cigarette with another from a case in his pocket, "It is _deliciously_ palpable, isn't it?"

Despite herself, Elsa could not help smiling at the expression on his face.

"Do you think I ought to be worried?" she asked Steiner the same question which she had put to Max earlier.

"Perhaps," he replied honestly, "But in the end she is just a governess - I think that he will either have his way with her, or lose interest."

"Then he will lose interest," she said firmly, "I'm sure that he would not consider doing anything… _improper_ to her - the children are in the house, and... and she is a postulant for God's sake!"

"But that only adds to the appeal, my dear!" Steiner teased her. She could see a wicked gleam in his eyes and laughed softly, despite what he was saying, "It must be driving him crazy," he continued, gleefully rubbing his hands together, "A high-spirited, virginal young woman who teases and charms him unknowingly - in a way that even _she_ does not understand... but one who will _not_ fall onto her back so easily!"

She laughed properly now. "You are as incorrigible as ever, Christoph!"

"And you as enchantingly beautiful as I remember," he replied smoothly. He came up beside her and put his arm around her, tugging her closer towards him. For a moment she made to pull away, thinking of her tacit agreement with Georg, but stopped as she felt her anger with him take hold again.

Steiner chuckled into her ear as she instead leant closer towards him. '_Let him see_,' she thought angrily, '_if he can bear to drag his attention away from the Fraulein for long enough.._.'

"It is a dangerous game, making a man jealous," Steiner pulled her nearer as he whispered into her ear, "And one that I _very_ much enjoy playing," he paused, before leaning in even closer, "Consider my services at your sole disposal, my dear..." he began to run his hands down her sides and towards her waist. This time she did stop him. He let out a mock sigh of disbelief and shook his head, feigning annoyance.

"And there was I thinking that we would re-enact our night of passion..." his tone was shamelessly flirtatious.

Elsa laughed again, privately thinking that other than dear Max Dettwelier, Christoph Steiner was probably the only person who could have made her feel better that evening.

"_Our night of passion_?" she flirted back in an incredulous tone, raising an eyebrow at him, "You know just as well as I do, Christoph, that there has never been anything of the sort between us..."

"A man can live in hope," he bantered back immediately, winking at her, "One of these days you will succumb to my charms, my dear Elsa and..."

She laughed, "Don't count on it!"

He shrugged, feigning annoyance again, "Well then I suppose I shall have to rely on my _superb_ imagination, won't I darling?" He winked at her again, and gave her an appraising glance, making it very clear what he was thinking.

"You are utterly wicked!" she exclaimed, joining in the pretence and crossing her arms with an indignant sounding sigh. Truthfully she was charmed in spite of herself.

"So I have been told, my dear, but I think you will agree that I am perfectly good at it!" he draped an arm around her shoulders.

She wished that Georg would appear at that moment - perhaps seeing his supposed fiancé in the arms of another man would make him remember himself.

They stood in companionable silence for a few minutes before Steiner finally spoke again. This time his tone was serious.

"Georg will get over her soon enough," he said softly.

"I hope so," she replied, more honestly than she expected.

He gave her shoulder a comforting squeeze, "I'm not sure why you stand for it..." he didn't quite ask her the question, but she answered anyway.

"I love him, I suppose," she admitted, "At least..." she paused, "I love the man who I thought he was."

He raised an eyebrow, not pushing her, but silently letting her know that he would listen if she wanted to talk.

"He's so different here," she said quietly, "In his home, with the children... and with her," she paused, "He once said that I was his saviour - that I brought some meaning back into his life after dear Agathe died, but I think... I think perhaps I just gave him a way to escape - a place to go to get away from what was troubling him here..."

"And now?" Steiner prompted as her words trailed off.

"Now, he seems to have found his home again," she said softly, "And it is not with me in Vienna."

"Then it will be with you here," he said firmly, "You are a truly extraordinary woman, Elsa," he continued seriously, "And Georg knows that."

She smiled at him, suddenly lost for words. He squeezed her shoulder again.

A few moments later they heard voices coming from inside and Steiner subtlety took a step away from her.

"He will get over his infatuation as soon as she is out of his sight," he reassured her again when there was no sign of anyone coming onto the terrace, "After all, he is only a man, and we are not so complicated!"

His comment lightened the mood, just as he had intended. Elsa laughed again.

"Not all men are like _you_, Christoph!" she replied teasingly.

"I know. I pity them, don't you?" he winked at her again before holding out his arm to lead her back inside, "Shall we return to the party, my dear?"


	7. Chapter 7

_SIX_

_It was Paris. Autumn-time and rather chilly out. The streets had an aching sense of familiarity about them, though he was sure that he had never been in France before, let alone in that particular boulevard. He was in his Navy uniform, proudly pressed and spotless, worn with all the arrogance of a new cadet. There was a thrill of excitement in the air and a promise of adventure - he was an officer of the Imperial Navy now... well, near enough anyway, and anything was possible. _

_Cadet Trapp had been let loose on the world for the first time in his life._

_The dream flitted quickly through all he remembered of that evening – drunkenness, shameful debauchery, revelry and madness… their pay-packets spent on the cheapest and most potent of liquors, the supposedly fine young men of the Austrian Navy had descended on Paris with a vengeance, all woefully naïve and immature, reaching such heights of intoxication for the first time in their lives._

_At last just Cadets Trapp and Steiner remained - the heaviest of drinkers and probably, the seasoned sea Captain would now admit, the most arrogant of them all. With their compatriots reduced to states of drunken bewilderment, they slipped away from the returning party, keen to test their charms on the ladies of Parisian society before returning aboard ship._

The tiny part of Georg's mind which was still conscious willed the dream to end there – he did not want to remember any more of that terrible evening, but as the washed-out wooden façade of a door appeared before his eyes, he felt himself drift completely away, sleep propelling him back through the years until he really was that nineteen-year-old hot-blooded youth, about to be introduced to an entirely new world.

_With red-peeling paint, a stench of liquor in the air, and a poster proclaiming: 'Des aventures caches, des plaisirs secrets', it was not a bar which either of them would normally have dared to enter. But that evening, with the courage of whisky and vodka behind them, they found themselves tumbling in through the door, hardly able to walk straight any more. _

_It was a seedy, blurred, and hazy world of cigarette smoke, potent beverages, and illicit transactions. Shadowy figures leered round the sides of their half-lit booths as the doors were flung open - surprised, perhaps, to see two uniformed, well-to-do looking young men entering such a place. _

_They caused such a stir in fact, that even the three dancers performing on a small stage in the corner of the room, span around to greet them. _

_The moment Cadet Trapp laid eyes on those dancers, his drink-fuelled mind had eyes for nothing else in the room. With their skimpy corset-like outfits, painted lips, long lashes, feathers, and fans, they were unlike any women he had ever seen before. Provocative, sensual, exciting… and also completely petrifying._

"_Aha!" exclaimed Steiner, the lecherous gleam in his eyes intensifying as the dancers heard the exclamation and twirled elegantly around. Steiner took off his cap and bowed to them with exaggerated courtesy, winning them three mesmerizing smiles as the girls spun away again, their fans swishing this way and that._

_Time suddenly skipped forwards. They were sitting in a booth now, nursing the last of their drinks, the few coins left in their pockets insufficient to buy another. _

_As the confusing jumble of music and movement on the stage came to an end, Georg felt Steiner pass him something under the table._

"_Here, Trappy…" It was a mock-up medal, an imitation of the sort worn by much more senior officers. Even owning such a thing was an insubordination, and besides which, anyone who knew anything at all about the Navy would also know that he was much too young to have ever achieved such a ranking. _

_Nevertheless, he put it on._

"_Caution be damned!" Steiner declared approvingly as he downed the rest of his drink. They were Captain and Captain now, and what woman on earth could refuse that? _

_The next part of the dream passed quickly – hardly a second seemed to have gone by before the dancers were at their table, enveloping them in a confusing, bewildering tangle of fans, feathers and exotic perfume._

_He hardly saw anything of the apartment they were led to, and could remember nothing save for its large well-worn bed. _

_He was pushed backwards onto the mattress as skilled hands began to undo the buttons of his uniform, pulling his shirt from the waistband of his trousers and unclipping the fake medal which was soon lost somewhere in the covers - he was sure that he never bothered to retrieve it afterwards. _

_He could hear Steiner somewhere, his voice raised in excitement._

_Regret - that was all he would come to feel about this moment, but it had all happened so quickly and -_

"_Captain..." One of the dancers purred his assumed title into his ear. _

_He knew that voice._

_His breath caught as he pulled back slightly to see Maria looking down at him, wearing an uncharacteristic smile which did not suit her._

_She was beautiful. And she did not belong in that torrid, awful place. _

_What had he done to her? _

_She ran her hand down his chest, her fingertips skittering their way towards his belt buckle._

"_No!" he caught her wrist and stopped her._

_She smiled again._

"_Isn't this what you want, Captain?" _

_She began to drop her other hand towards the belt of his trousers instead._

"_Not like this," he insisted, seizing her wrist again. _

_Her enchanting blue eyes stared questioningly down at him._

"_Georg..." another voice purred in his ear, and he snapped his head around in bewilderment to find Elsa Schrader bearing down on him. He dropped Maria's hand as she came towards him, and then stiffened in shock as behind her he saw the third dancer, now transformed into the image of his dear wife, Agathe._

_It was horrific - three phantoms depicting the three most important women in his life, now thoroughly distorted and unnatural… and somehow present altogether at one of the most shameful moments of his youth. _

"_How...?" he finally breathed. _

_Elsa pushed him backwards onto the bed as she reached him. Her once-seductive smile vanished as he shuffled frantically away from her, turning around desperately for an escape. _

"_You do not love me." _

_Her words were simple and, he had to admit to himself, perfectly true. He shrank away as she came nearer still, running a hand carelessly across his bare chest, her nails scratching his skin. Before he could stop her she was kissing him, harshly and horribly - as close as a kiss could come to an act of hatred. He tried to pull away, but somehow she had ensnared him. He struggled, tearing his lips from hers and shouting that this was not what he wanted, and at last she broke away from him, hurling herself across the room before suddenly vanishing. _

_He hardly had a second of respite before Agathe took his hand._

_A lump rose in his throat at the sight of her._

_Did she think he had forgotten her? Moved on from her? _

_Because he hadn't. He _wouldn't_. _

_He wouldn't let himself._

_It did not seem however that Agathe was bothered by any of these concerns. With a soft smile playing across her face she lent down and kissed him gently, her lips brushing his own lightly before she pulled away. _

_He made to follow but she stopped him with a single gesture, and for the first time he saw that her other hand was holding Maria's._

_Could she forgive him, he asked, staring into her soft brown eyes._

_She smiled warmly back, squeezing his hand gently before releasing it. A second later she too had vanished._

_An eternity seemed to pass by in a heartbeat as he met Maria's gaze._

_Awkwardly he rose to his feet, only half-aware of the bed melting away from beneath him. The crimson red walls vanished too as he took a step nearer to her, leaving them hanging together in a milky white stasis. He cupped her chin gently with his hand and watched as her lips curved into the smile he knew so well._

_He was nineteen-years-old no more, and she was no longer wearing the dancer's outfit. Instead she was clad in a long flowing white dress and he was the veteran sea Captain once again – the man who had earned every one of his medals._

"_My love," he stroked his fingers across her cheek and sank his lips down to hers._

_The instant they met he felt himself being dredged towards consciousness again. The dream was suddenly falling away, disappearing elusively into the mysteries of sleep. _

_This time he did not want to wake up, and struggled against his subconscious once more as he felt that wonderful, perfect moment beginning to slip through his fingers…_

Georg awoke feeling surprisingly at ease. He lay for a few minutes, propped up on his pillows, wondering what it was that had rendered him into such a state of tranquillity. It must have been something in his dream, he supposed, though he could hardly recall anything of it. He had been remembering that terrible evening in Paris, he cast his mind back, but it seemed that somewhere amongst his recollections he must have fallen asleep…

A few seconds later he shrugged the feelings away – the revelations of his slumber did not seem keen to return and he was sure that they had been nothing important anyway.

It was an old adage, and one which Georg Von Trapp would have done well to believe in, that one could often be much wiser in sleep than in the reality of daytime.


	8. Chapter 8

_SEVEN_

Maria had never seen such a beautiful room in her life. Light shimmered around every surface and the floor was so highly polished that she could almost see her own reflection. She had the whole splendid room to herself as well - everyone else was busy donning their party clothes in preparation for the guests' arrival, and the younger children were taking a nap so they could stay up late to watch the dancing.

As she walked into the centre of the room, Maria could not help but think back to the first time she had been in there - her only company a pair of dust-coated chandeliers. She smiled. The transformation to the ballroom was as spectacular as the transformation in its owner.

He was not in there though, she checked carefully. Once satisfied that she was completely alone, with only the instruments and tables for company, she decided to indulge herself. After all, she would most certainly not be dancing at the party, and it was highly unlikely that she would ever have the good fortune to be in such an impressive setting again. Ballrooms were almost surely off limits to the sisters of Nonnberg abbey.

"_And most likely the postulants too_," her conscience reminded her as she dropped into a curtsey. Still, what did it matter if she indulged in the fantasy for a moment? It was not as though she were dancing with an actual man - just a vague, indistinct silhouette of one, his only feature that he was slightly taller than she was. She turned gracefully around, her imaginary partner leading her into the waltz as she imagined music filling the ballroom. She hummed along to herself, thinking how wonderful it would be to glide across the dance floor with the other couples.

"Must I always find you in here with an invisible dance partner, Fraulein?"

She jumped slightly, startled. How had he managed to creep up on her so successfully? It was as though he had an innate sense of when she was doing something she really ought not to be. Fortunately, however, his tone this time was entirely good-natured and she span around to meet his smile.

He was dressed impeccably for the party in a long dark tail-coat and elegantly pressed white shirt and waistcoat. With the medal of the Maria-Theresa cross clipped around his neck he suddenly looked every bit the sea Captain.

"That was really quite good," he complimented her and she turned away slightly to try and hide the redness in her cheeks, "I did not know that dancing was a skill one could acquire in our famous Nonnberg convent!"

She laughed slightly, still embarrassed.

"Actually, I'm sure the sisters would heartily disapprove, Captain," she answered him, "I learned some dances when I was at school in Vienna."

"Ah ha," he nodded in understanding, moving out of the doorway and further into the room, "And is the waltz your favourite, Fraulein?"

He was teasing her, but she did not know quite why.

"Not really," she replied carefully, "I prefer some of the traditional folk songs actually, but a waltz felt more appropriate in here."

He nodded, "It can be a very lovely pastime. With the right partner of course."

A wistful, rather solemn expression suddenly crossed his face and she wondered if he was thinking of his wife.

"Oh I wouldn't know, Captain," she answered briskly, bringing his attention back to her, "The few people I danced with at school were most definitely inferior to my partner now..." he frowned slightly, "At least invisible people do not have heavy feet!"

He laughed along with her.

A few seconds later awkwardness had settled over them again. The same pattern had been repeating all day – moments of gaiety would suddenly end with them both staring down at their feet or over each other's shoulders, clumsily trying to avoid one another's gaze until something would inevitably interrupt them. And with caterers, delivery men, rehearsing musicians, and of course the seven Von Trapp children underfoot, those interruptions had been far too frequent for Georg's liking. He wanted to talk to her – to have a proper conversation about what had happened the previous evening, only it was very difficult to begin such a discussion when they were certain to be disturbed within minutes.

Now was his last chance before the ball, he decided as he watched her stare up at the ceiling, and he was determined to clear the air between them. Steiner's question - of whether her opinion of him had altered - had been ringing in his ears all day. He could hardly blame her if it had, he considered regretfully, but for some reason he felt compelled to find out, and to reassure her that he was now a much wiser, prudent, and altogether better man than in his youth. The fact that he had not been able to find time to do so, and that their easy manner _did_ seem to have subtly altered, had been worrying him all day.

"Can I talk to you for a minute?"

Her eyes widened at his question.

"Well of course, Captain," she answered, "If it's about the children's performance this evening then-"

"No, no," he interrupted her, gesturing for her to follow him as he led the way out of the ballroom, "It's not about that it's… well it's… oh I'll tell you outside!"

He finished very inarticulately, pushing open the back door onto the terrace with a rather desperate shrug.

She met his gaze, her eyes innocently questioning, and he suddenly felt a beat of recognition, as though he had seen her looking at him like that in some other context… one that he could not remember clearly at all.

He shook his head.

"After you," he motioned her through the door before quickly and rather guiltily scanning the foyer. For the first time all day there was nobody there – his staff were taking an early supper in the kitchen, Elsa and Max were apparently still preparing themselves for the party, and the children seemed to have finally given up with their indomitable dancing practise on the stairs. Yes, quite perfect; he decided as he pulled the door closed behind them – he could finally spend a moment alone with Maria without interruption.

He did not begin speaking until they had reached the lakeside, and even then the words he been carefully rehearsing all day seemed to suddenly elude him.

"Fraulein… I uh… I wanted to speak with you about uh…" he cleared his throat, cursing his uncharacteristic awkwardness, "That is… I think I owe you an apology," the words finally came out in a tremendous rush as he turned to face her, "For Lieutenant Steiner-"

"Oh, you don't need to apologise for him, Captain!" she interrupted, "He did not offend me and I-"

"And for myself..." he added quickly, determined that she would not forgive him so easily.

She frowned.

"Fraulein..." he was not sure quite what to say and looked away from her and across the lake, "I have done some things in my life that I am not proud of and-"

He was amazed to hear her laugh.

"Captain you do not need to explain yourself to me."

If another woman had said such words to him then he might have thought them rather disingenuous, but he knew too much of Maria's honesty and sincerity to believe that of her. And she was right too. He knew that he did not need to explain himself - to her, or to anyone. Steiner's story was so far in his past now that he had almost forgotten it.

"Nevertheless, I… uh… well certainly no one could make a saint out of me, Fraulein, but I very much regret that night," he clenched his hands over the railing, finding the water much easier to speak to than his companion, "And I uh… well after I met Agathe I realised that the lifestyle I had uh… _enjoyed_," he cleared his throat awkwardly, "Was a pale shadow of what I could have… I mean with someone I loved…" he suddenly chuckled, rolling his eyes, "I really am not _that_ bad, Fraulein and I wouldn't want you to think so!"

He finished so desperately that it was almost comical.

"I'm sorry – I don't seem to be making much sense this evening, do I?" he continued a beat later, embarrassed that she had not made any sort of reply.

He finally turned back towards her and swallowed hard at the look on her face.

Pure unadulterated affection shone from her eyes, perhaps even adoration, though once again he told himself that he was seeing something in her that was not there.

"As I told the Lieutenant," she answered him slowly, "There is nothing he could say to me which will change any of my opinions..." she paused, "Especially not my opinion of you."

Her words were perfectly true as well. As reprehensible as his actions had surely been, she would be a conceited individual indeed to proclaim it possible to go through life without making any mistakes at all. And she was absolutely certain that he was beyond any such behaviour now – the look on his face during the conversation the previous evening had told her volumes about the man he was now. No, Georg Von Trapp was the most honourable, brave and good man that she knew, and she was sure that she would never meet another like him, as long as she lived.

Georg felt his heart soar as she finished hurriedly, looking away over the lake as though she herself was now embarrassed. She was completely and utterly remarkable, he decided.

"Thank you," he whispered softly, letting out the breath he had hardly realised he was holding.

They stood in silence for a few seconds, both afraid of the sudden closeness which seemed to have formed between them.

Georg was surprised when Maria finally spoke again.

"And you did give me fair warning yesterday afternoon, Captain!" she reminded him, her tone suddenly light-hearted.

He took her bait, so relieved and delighted that she would still tease him that he responded - he would curse himself later - with rather too much enthusiasm.

"Yes, indeed, Fraulein!" he replied, "I suppose it was one of those moments in my youth when... _how did you put it_?" he paused, as though he had forgotten. "Ah yes, 'when the good Lord does not make it so easy for us to resist those temptations'..." he was rewarded with a shy smile.

Silence fell for a moment again as both of them remembered what had almost happened just after that conversation had taken place.

_Should he mention it? Apologise for the… insanity, madness, heat-induced lunacy, which he had now told himself a thousand times _must_ have been the cause of it…?_

_Or would mentioning it just bring to light a whole number of much deeper concerns – concerns which he would not even dare to think about yet, let alone speak of?_

"I apologise for intruding upon your evening yesterday, Captain," Maria mercifully interrupted his thoughts before he could persuade himself into another round of apology, "It was inappropriate for me to be there and-"

"It was _not_ inappropriate Fraulein!" he must have sounded angrier than he had intended as she flinched slightly, "I'm very glad you were there…. I detest gossip," he went on a minute later, "The pretention of society... the mannerisms which we must affect with each other... it's all an illusion."

"Elsa thrives on it," he went on, "But I think I would be much happier taking a boat out there on the lake," he pointed across the water, "With just the children and... and the people who matter the most."

He had almost said her.

He shrugged slightly, embarrassed again when she did not reply; "Does that surprise you, Fraulein?" he prompted her.

"No, no!" she replied hurriedly, as though she had been lost in thought, "I know exactly what you mean, Captain. I would often go up to the mountains - just to be by myself and pray... I think it's the only way you can really come to know yourself."

He nodded - she really did understand then.

"Anyway, Fraulein," he said after another pause, "Despite Christoph's revelations of my uh… reprehensible behaviour…" he regarded her out of the corner of his eye, still nervous that she would suddenly decide that their… friendship?… professional relationship?… whatever exactly it was between them, was no longer to her liking, "… I was very glad that you were there - you reminded me of that."

She felt herself blushing and turned away slightly, hoping that he would not see.

"And I'm relieved that you showed better judgement than my eldest daughter," he continued a few moments later, "And did not fall for the dear Lieutenant's charms...!" she laughed with him.

"Not at all, Captain," she replied, "Forgive me for being outspoken-"

"O-ho! I think we would have fallen out long ago if I couldn't manage _that_ Fraulein!"

She glared at him, resisting the temptation to slap him on the arm before continuing, "Anyway, I must say, I agree whole-heartedly with your earlier assessment of Lieutenant Steiner, and I am sure that Liesl would too, if she had gotten to know him. I wonder that any woman-"

"O-ho!" he laughed again, interrupting her, "I'm sure there are only a few women who would agree with you there, Fraulein! He has a reputation for being quite the charmer."

She laughed. "Well I suppose as you said earlier Captain, dreamy eyes and gorgeous smiles can be most distracting..." she could not resist teasing him back, reassuring him, perhaps, that she did not think so badly of him after all.

He felt his heart soar again.

"I'm sure Lieutenant Steiner would be very flattered to hear you describe him in that way…."

His eyes glinted mischievously.

"Those were your two daughters' words, not mine, Captain," she replied immediately, "As I'm sure you already know!"

He had the decency to look slightly shamefaced.

"Well yes," he agreed, "It's a most disgusting habit, Fraulein," he continued mock-seriously, "But when I walked past the school room and heard Brigitta ask you whether you had ever found a man handsome..." she blushed again, "Well I confess, my curiosity got the better of me."

He could certainly give as good as he got then, Maria decided, watching as a teasing smile snaked across his face. Although his tone was light-hearted, the strange feeling in her stomach intensified.

"You should know better than I, Captain, that sometimes 'there are rooms in this house which are not to be disturbed'!"

He laughed again, more genuinely than he had any time during the previous evening, and could not resist pushing her a little further. She fascinated and intrigued him just like... well just like his wife had once done.

"I guess we have both been guilty of that transgression then Fraulein," he reminded her, "And I do not believe that you ever did answer my daughter's question..." his eyes smiled into hers, though a distinct glimmer of a challenge hid in his gaze.

He saw her breath quicken.

"As I told Liesl, Captain," she replied, "We are not allowed to think of men in that way in the abbey."

'_Very good, Fraulein_,' he thought, before fixing her with another of his wicked smiles.

"Oh come now, Fraulein," his tone was more flirtatious than even he had been intending, "We both know your _abominable_ attitude towards rule-breaking!"

"Sister Berthe would certainly tell you that," she replied, cringing slightly as she imagined what the nun would think of their conversation.

"She sounds a formidable character, this Sister Berthe," he observed.

Maria shrugged slightly, "She just wants what is best for us," she answered seriously, "And to guide us on God's path."

'_And what is God's path for you?_' he wondered as he regarded her again, '_Not to spend your life locked in an abbey, I don't think.'_

Their conversation once more lapsed into silence before a sudden fanfare of music came bursting from the villa. They both jumped and then laughed as they realised what it was.

"The orchestra must be warming up," he commented.

"I suppose we should go back inside," she answered turning back towards the villa, "Or you should at least," she amended.

He groaned, "Unfortunately I suppose I had better," he shuddered, "I don't suppose even you can save me from this insanity for long!"

He waved his hand towards the villa, suddenly deciding that the very last thing in the world he felt like doing was spending the evening being spun around on Elsa Schrader's arm as if he were an extra accessory to her outfit.

No, staying outside by the lake… or even running away into the darkness seemed far more appealing.

As long as Maria came with him, he decided suddenly as he turned towards her again. She was smiling.

"Well it's just for one evening, Captain," she reminded him, "And then everything can settle back to normal again… and the children are so excited, they're so pleased you agreed them to singing…"

He nodded quickly as an idea suddenly blossomed in his mind.

"Would you care to-"

The music came to an abrupt end before he could finish his request. He dropped his hand back to his side and laughed.

"Onward into the fray then!" he declared a minute later, saluting the façade of the house.

They shared another laugh and he abruptly reached out and grasped her arm gently.

"Thank you, Fraulein," he said quietly.

This time she did not have to ask him why.

"Just for being you."

He patted her arm gently before releasing it. The caress felt suddenly very familiar, and far more natural than it should have done.

_But she was in blue… not in white… and he was not in his uniform… _

The confused thoughts flitted suddenly through his mind as the gesture jogged his memory and he paused for a moment, somehow finding himself standing much closer to her than he had been.

"I'll see you inside then uh…" he trailed off as he moved away, wanting to call her Maria and knowing that he should call her Fraulein.

She nodded mutely before lifting her eyes to look at him.

He refused to meet her gaze, looking instead at a safe point on the bridge of her nose. He was quite nervous as to what she might see in his eyes if she were to look into them… and, perhaps more pertinently, what he might remember if he looked into hers.

No, he was not quite ready for that yet, and in fact it would not be until later in the evening, in the middle of a hypnotizing dance, that he would remember his dream in its entirety.

"Enjoy the evening Captain," she managed.

He turned briskly away, "You too, Fraulein."

Taking a deep breath he headed back towards the house.

…..

High up on a balcony, dressed in a stunning golden gown with a large cream organza, Baroness Elsa Schrader looked down at the scene below with a trace of a tear in her eye. She clenched her fists, letting out a sigh as Georg strode out of her sight towards the villa, leaving the governess standing still at the waterside, the look on her face leaving little doubt that she was totally, completely and irrevocably in love with the Captain.

She wondered if she ought to go to Max, to seek out his advice and tell him what she had seen, and in fact she made it as far as the bottom of the stairs with that exact thought in mind. It was fate then, perhaps, that it was not Max Dettwelier who she first encountered, but Georg himself, crossing the foyer towards the ballroom.

He turned as he heard her.

"Ah-ha!" he exclaimed as he saw her, "You look beautiful my darling."

She accepted a kiss from him, pulling a tear back into her eye as he squeezed her shoulders gently.

"You ready?" he whispered into her ear.

She smiled back at him. Yes, she was ready, she decided as she moved to stand beside him at the bottom of the entrance steps. She was ready to become Baroness Von Trapp, and not a single force on earth was going to stand between her and that goal.

Max Dettwelier came down the stairs with a grin.

"Stunning!" he exclaimed with a bow, "Here's to the happy couple!"

He lifted the flute of champagne which he had obviously already acquired from somewhere and took a hearty mouthful.

She forced a smile back at him and watched as a frown flitted over his face.

"You alright?" he sidled up to her and whispered in her ear.

She looked over towards Georg but he had already taken a step away, now in conversation with his rather worried looking housekeeper.

She hesitated for a second on her reply, knowing exactly what Max would tell her if she were to confide in him.

"Yes, yes, just fine," she lied, "You look very dapper yourself."

He shrugged modestly, "I try," he winked, "You look absolutely beautiful my darling," he smiled, far more sincerely, she decided, than Georg had.

"Thank you, Max."

She kissed him delicately on the cheek and was amused to see his ears redden.

"Yes, yes, well…" he awkwardly took a step away, "Enjoy, both of you! I may not see much of you amongst all my mingling…! But save me a dance?"

"Of course."

He saluted before stepping into the salon and she could not help but feel a twinge of guilt. Poor, dear Max Dettwelier would most surely disapprove of what she intended to do, and would likely vow that the Elsa Schrader he knew would never be capable of such an act. But perhaps, she decided, she would just have to disappoint her oldest and dearest friend.

She would _not_ do it though, she vowed to herself, if absolutely everything went just as she planned that evening.

The door opened, admitting the first guest.

"Here we go," Georg muttered into her ear before dropping into a bow.

She knelt into a curtsey.

And if everything did _not_ go as she wanted… well, she would heed Christoph Steiner's wise words:

'_He will get over his infatuation as soon as she is out of his sight'_


	9. Chapter 9

Author's notes: Since the last chapter ended where the ball scene starts in the film (and the film can do a much better job of telling that part of the story than I could ever hope to!), that's almost it for this fic. I just included this little epilogue to tie some loose ends together and because I wanted to leave Maria and Georg in a happier place than I did at the end of Chapter Seven! This is set a while after the ball, between the gazebo scene and the wedding.

_EPILOGUE_

_A couple of months later_

"Let's sit for awhile," Georg said as they reached the gazebo, pulling off his jacket and spreading it out underneath one of the trees.

Maria smiled at him, releasing his hand as she leant back against the tree trunk. He frowned for a second, clicking his tongue against his teeth before dropping to the ground himself and turning to lie with his head resting on her lap.

She laughed as he settled himself comfortably and immediately began running a hand through his thick dark hair. He smiled at her caress, taking her other hand in his and causally running his fingers across her own before lifting it to his lips to kiss. The two midnight blue sapphires of her engagement ring glinted as he lowered her hand again.

They sat for a moment in peaceful silence and Maria found her mind wandering back to the last time they had sat underneath that particular tree.

"Do you remember the last afternoon we sat out here… when the children were playing in the lake?" she addressed him at last.

"Ah, yes!" he exclaimed immediately, fixing his eyes on her, "I remember it _very_ well!" he paused, "Do you know how close I came to kissing you that day, Maria?"

She laughed merrily.

"You were utterly bewitching in the heat, my dear..." he sat up a little, shifting to lie on his side, "And with your _eloquent_ little remark about how difficult God could make it to resist temptation…" he rolled his eyes as she laughed again, "… or whatever it was that you said... You have no idea how apt those words were – or how much they came to torture me!"

"Oh, I think I may," she interrupted him.

He raised an eyebrow in amused curiosity.

"Having you sitting so close to me… and with your shirt..." she trailed off, feeling herself beginning to blush again – although she had been an engaged woman for over a month, Maria's shyness about some subjects was still yet to be completely vanquished.

"_Yes_?" he teased, lifting her chin with his thumb and forefinger and forcing her to look him in the eye. Despite her embarrassment she still could not resist smiling.

"Well, it was the first time that I realised that I wanted to... that I wanted to..." she trailed off again and he laughed.

"Wanted to _what_? _Fraulein_?" his tone was much more flirtatious now and she could see a dangerous gleam in his eye.

"Well I don't know, _Captain_," she retorted, hitting him playfully on his upper arm, "You confused me... I don't know what I was feeling, I-"

"Then permit me to refresh your memory."

He sat up and offered her his arm, unbuttoning his shirt cuff.

Maria lifted her eyes back to his and he shrugged playfully, his lips twitching into a smirk and his eyebrows rising slightly, as though he were daring her to accept his invitation.

She reached out slowly, supporting his arm with one hand, and beginning to roll up his sleeve with the other.

He watched carefully as she folded it over just above his elbow, and then silently unbuttoned the cuff of the other sleeve so that she could do the same.

"There," she whispered softly as she rolled that sleeve up too. Her eyes met his and he saw something pass across her face, as though she had just thought of something.

"Anything else?" he asked her softly.

She did not reply, but instead her gaze dropped to his top button. He silently gave her permission to continue, and felt her hands deftly loosening the knot of his tie, and then slowly undoing both that button and one below it.

It was torture - sweet torture, feeling her beginning to undress him, and knowing that she could not continue. Not yet.

"And... and your hair, Captain," she continued, bolder now, reaching her hands up and running them through his dark hair.

They looked at each other for a long moment. There was intensity in his eyes which she knew she would never get used to.

"If you will indulge me," he whispered at last, leaning towards her and running his palm across her cheek, "I never like to leave things unfinished..."

His lips met hers, softly at first, and she melted into his embrace.

"Well..." he began when he had at last forced himself to pull away, "Perhaps it's a good thing that we were interrupted that afternoon, after all…!"

She laughed, closing the gap between them with another quick kiss to his lips.

"I think you probably know the answer to your question now, Captain," Maria went on a few moments later, now tightly snuggled in his arms.

"_Georg_," he corrected her for what felt like the millionth time, "And what question was that?"

"The question which your daughter asked me… and which you later seemed _very_ interested in the answer to…." she reminded him, squeezing his arm teasingly, "About whether I had ever found a man handsome before..."

He laughed, pressing a kiss to the crown of her head.

"I hope the answer is, 'yes', then?"

"Most definitely, _Georg_."

"Anyone I know, my darling?"

She pretended to consider for a moment.

"I would think so," she quipped back at last, "He was, after all, the most handsome man in the Navy."

He raised an eyebrow, "I believe, my dear," he replied, "That those were my daughter's words, and about _Lieutenant Steiner_, if I recall the conversation correctly..."

"Ah, but he was most certainly not the man who came to _my_ mind!" she answered.

He chuckled and kissed her softly again.

"I wonder what _he_ makes of all this," Maria mused, "A Captain marrying his governess..."

"O-ho! I am sure that it has provided him with enough scandal for many more entertaining stories!"

"I don't recall you being so entertained..." she teased him back, shifting in his embrace.

"_Whatever_ do you mean?"

"Borrowing military titles... Parisian dancers..." she tut-ted playfully, knowing that her fiancé was now far above any of that sort of behaviour.

He laughed again, and then fixed her with another of his intense stares. He could flirt and tease just as well as she could, and Maria knew it.

"Well now..." he whispered, his voice suddenly deeper, "I _think_, my darling..." he sank down, grazing his lips gently across her cheek, "That it is… _you_... who will _very_ soon..." he slid his lips slowly down to her neck, punctuating his words with kisses, "... be experiencing the benefits of their... instruction..."

He whispered the last part in her ear and watched as she flushed bright red. Suddenly he wondered if he had gone too far and moved his lips a millimetre away before hearing her reply.

"I look forward to it... _Captain_," she breathed, this time using his title on purpose.

He took a deep breath at her words and instinctively dropped back to her neck, kissing along her jawline and finally meeting her lips. She arched in to him as he deepened the embrace, and it took every ounce of his self-will to pull back.

Unmarried and beneath a tree in the grounds was _not_ a good place to consummate their love for the first time.

Her eyes fluttered open questioningly as she felt him break the contact.

"My love, if you kiss me like _that_…" he ran a hand down her arm, "Then I'm afraid I will not be able to take responsibility for my actions…" he smirked, "And you may see some of the long-lost scoundrel returning!"

She laughed, leaning forwards again to give him a disappointingly chaste kiss on the cheek.

"Georg…?" she began again a few minutes later, "I was wondering – what did Lieutenant Steiner mean about your track record with nuns?"

He groaned.

"I was hoping you might have forgotten that," he answered looking suddenly rather abashed.

"_Georg_…."

"You promise you will not leave, my darling, even though your fiancé was once rather a rogue?"

"Never," she smiled, kissing him again.

"Well umm…" he moved in a little further, "I didn't actually know she was a nun at the time," he explained awkwardly, "It was not until afterwards when she…" he laughed at the memory, "When she donned her wimple, thanked me for _'introducing her to God'_," he smirked broadly, "And then went to tell the whole bloody lot of it to some priest at confession…!" he shook his head.

"Oh the poor woman!" Maria once again took him by surprise.

"I daresay she did not find the experience _thoroughly_ unpleasant my dear…" he winked again, "In fact there were moments when I would say she enjoyed herself quite _marvellously_-"

"Oooh you are insufferably arrogant!"

"All men are when it comes to that," he retorted carelessly, "And any man who isn't is not worth you wasting your time on!"

"One of your valuable pieces of advice, Captain?"

"Absolutely."

They shared a laugh.

"No, I only meant that she must have been so confused about her faith," Maria went on a minute later, "The poor woman must have felt so distanced from God – I do hope she found her way back…"

"Ah, you haven't a single cynical bone in your body, have you my dear?" he smiled affectionately.

"Georg, what if..." Maria began, suddenly sounding concerned, "I mean you've had lots of experience in..." she flushed, "I mean _some_ experience in..."

He took her hands, immediately knowing what she meant.

"Look at me," he said softly. Their eyes met.

"Being with you is so wonderful..." he trailed off, his voice catching, "I never thought that I could ever find..."

Her eyes filled with tears.

He kissed her palm gently, "I will never ask you to give me anything that you do not feel completely, wholly comfortable with..." he whispered.

"I never doubted that for a moment." She kissed him gently.

"And to be quite honest..." he paused for a second, "I'm a little nervous myself."

Maria frowned in surprise, "But..." she trailed off and he shrugged, suddenly embarrassed.

"Well you know I... uh... haven't, um..." he began again a second later but trailed off, "I haven't been intimate with a woman since um... well, since Agathe really..."

"You and Elsa...?"

He shook his head, wrapping his arms around her again. "No. It never felt right."

"It would hardly have mattered now anyway," she declared a second later, though he could hear a distinct tone of relief in her voice.

"Well, maybe not..." he smirked, "After all, as you pointed out, I obviously do have some experience in that area... otherwise, ironically, I would never have met you, my dear!"

They shared a smile.

"Nevertheless, I just wanted you to know," he kissed her forehead again.

"Thank you."

They held each other in silence for a couple of minutes.

"But if it doesn't..." Maria began again awkwardly, still troubled, "I mean if it doesn't live up to... if you..."

He chuckled.

"My love, if this..." he inclined his head towards the tree, reminding her of what they had been doing just a few minutes earlier. His lips twitched into a smile which she returned, blushing, "Is anything to go by... then I think..." he leant forwards to whisper in her ear, "That it will be quite... _incredible_."

He kissed her once more.

_A huge thank you again to everyone who has read this, and particularly for the reviews! Please do let me know what you thought of this story – good or bad! I'm pretty new to writing fanfic and always keen to improve :-)_


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